Lava Card
Lava · Visa
Lava Card is a secured Visa card tied to Lava's self-custody Bitcoin app, a US company founded in 2022 and backed by Founders Fund and Khosla Ventures. The card is non-custodial: users keep control of their Bitcoin and spend from a balance they fund themselves (via stablecoins, bank transfer, direct deposit, or the Bitcoin-collateralized BLOC line of credit). Every purchase earns cashback paid in Bitcoin (3% in the US, 1% internationally, up to 5% at partner merchants such as Amazon, Apple and Netflix). Accepted at over 150 million merchants in 150+ countries, with no annual fee, no issuance fee, and no markup on Visa's official exchange rate.
The clause
That 5% on the banner isn't what you pocket.
After FX markup, fees and withdrawals, on an average profile of €1,000/mo (20% abroad).
Data & conditions
§ Amounts in USD/GBP are shown in the service's native currency.
| Network | Visa |
|---|---|
| Fund custody | Self-custody (funds in your control) |
| Issuance fee | Free |
| Annual fee | Free |
| ATM withdrawal | 2% |
| FX markup | 0% |
| Cashback | 5% in BTC · Nessuno |
| Chains | Bitcoin, Lightning, Solana |
| On-chain settlement | No |
| Contactless | Yes |
| KYC | Full |
| Privacy | 4/10 |
| Supported countries | US, EEA, UK, APAC, LATAM · 150+ countries |
| Funding / solidity | Lava è una società statunitense attiva nel lending e nei servizi Bitcoin. A novembre 2025 ha annunciato una raccolta da 200 milioni di dollari combinando capitale di rischio e capitale di debito per la sua piattaforma di prestiti garantiti in Bitcoin. |
| Estimated net annual cost | €0/year |
| Segment | B2C |
| Funding / solidity | Lava is a US company operating in Bitcoin lending and services. In November 2025 it announced a $200 million raise combining venture and debt capital for its Bitcoin-collateralized lending platform. |
| MiCA / License status | Not disclosed |
Strengths
- Cashback paid in Bitcoin (up to 5% at partner merchants, 3% in the US on every purchase)
- No annual fee, no issuance fee and no markup on Visa's exchange rate
- Self-custody model: the user retains control of their Bitcoin
- Self-custody: funds stay in your wallet — the platform cannot touch them.
Weaknesses
- Secured card: the balance must be pre-funded, it is not a traditional credit card
- International cashback drops to 1% outside the United States
- ATM withdrawals carry a 2% fee (with a $1 minimum)
- Full KYC required: verified identity, zero pseudonymity.
Verdict
Non-custodial secured card issued via US partners: users retain control of their Bitcoin, but there is no FDIC-style deposit guarantee or protection fund. Full KYC is required and the balance must be pre-funded (stablecoins, bank transfer or the BLOC line).
Self-custody model with Bitcoin cashback: a strong point for those seeking sovereignty over their funds. Note, however, the mandatory full KYC and the 2025 controversy over the change of custody model.
Promp's editorial rating based on real fees and net annual cost. Promp reviews third-party products independently.
"Sovereignty" rating: score computed on privacy/anonymity (30%), fund control (20%), censorship resistance (20%), trustless/auditability (20%) and costs (10%). Same data, different weights.
Reputation
What happened to people who used Lava Card, and what users say. External signals: they do not feed the promp.it rating.
Incidents & regulatory actions
No known incidentSearch across public sources: no known hack, withdrawal freeze or regulatory action as of the verification date.
verified on
Public reviews
-
App Store ↗
4.7/5
169 reviews
United States storefront, the service's home market. Exact figure from Apple's lookup endpoint (4.68046 average) for the app "Lava: Bitcoin Loans & Card" by developer Lava Global Inc. The score covers the whole app — bitcoin-backed loans, wallet and card together — not the card alone, which has no app of its own. Small sample: 169 ratings.
-
Google Play ↗
4.4/5
131 reviews
United States storefront, the service's home market. Rating and count taken from the page's JSON-LD structured data (exact average 4.358490), where the visible label rounds to 4.4. Package com.lavamobile, listed author Lava Global Inc. with lava.xyz as its site, confirming the operator's identity. Here too the score measures the full app, not the card.
Weighted average across 2 public review platforms (300 reviews in total), weighted by volume. This is not our rating: it is those platforms’ average.
FAQ
Is the Lava Card custodial?
No. Lava is a self-custody app: users keep control of their Bitcoin via on-chain contracts, and the card spends from a balance the user funds themselves.
Which currency is the cashback paid in?
Cashback is paid in Bitcoin: 3% in the US and 1% internationally on every purchase, and up to 5% at partner merchants such as Amazon, Apple and Netflix.
Sources
- Official service page Fees · Cashback · Payment network · Fx markup · +4 Data verified on Jul 10, 2026
- bitcoinmagazine.com Payment network · Cashback · Custodial · Secured · +2 Data verified on Jun 23, 2026
- todey.xyz Atm fee · Kyc · Blockchain · Cashback Data verified on Jun 22, 2026