Pay card is closed: here is what happened and what to use in its place
Available in US
The Pay card was a prepaid crypto card issued through a mobile app called Card Pay, developed by Cardstack. If you have been searching for the card in 2025, you will not find it. The programme has been closed to new users since late 2022, and the app has not received an update since February 2023. This review explains what happened, what it means if you already hold an old card, and which alternatives you can turn to.
Card details below are current as of October 28, 2026.
Verdict
The Pay card scores 1.8 out of 10. It is not a card you can apply for today, and there is no clear path to using one even if you found an old one. The programme was effectively shut when its payment partner, Wyre, disabled prepaid card purchases in December 2022, and the app has been silent since version 1.2.0 in February 2023. Costs were never published beyond a single in-app purchase, no issuer is named, and there is no functioning customer support path. For almost everyone, the answer is to look at alternatives.
| Criterion | Score | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Who can get it | 0 / 10 | Programme closed; prepaid card purchases via Wyre disabled from 2022-12-05; last app version 1.2.0 dated 2023-02-18 |
| Cost | 5 / 10 | Not disclosed; card fees are not published; the only paid item in the app is an “Account on Gnosis Chain” for GBP 0.99 |
| Top-up options | 2 / 10 | Programme closed; ways to load the card are not disclosed; Polygon was removed in version 1.1.13 |
| Reliability and complaints | 1 / 10 | Card purchases via Wyre disabled; Wyre announced its own wind-down in 2023; the card issuer is not named; App Store (UK) rating is 5.0 from just 3 ratings |
| Everyday use | 0 / 10 | Cards are no longer issued through the app; physical delivery is not mentioned in the listing |
The audience note here matters: if you are one of the small number of people who held an old Card Pay wallet from before the closure, this review explains what you can and cannot do with it. For everyone else, the verdict is straightforward. Skip to the alternatives section.
What happened to the programme
The Pay card was part of a DeFi payments wallet that Cardstack built under the “Card Pay” name. The mobile listing describes it as a place to “manage your prepaid cards,” and it sits inside a broader crypto wallet that supports things like claiming rewards individually, transactions confirmed with Touch ID or Face ID, and an in-app upgrade to an “Account on Gnosis Chain” for GBP 0.99.
The card itself was, in practice, a prepaid crypto card. Cardstack partnered with Wyre, a payments infrastructure company, to handle the issuing and funding of the prepaid cards. That partnership is what broke.
On 2022-12-05, version 1.1.12 of the app shipped a note that prepaid card purchases through Wyre had been disabled “until further notice.” That was the moment the programme stopped taking new customers. Four days later, the last meaningful app release went out, version 1.2.0 on 2023-02-18, which appeared to focus on wallet and account management rather than cards. After that, the app was not updated again. The App Store (UK) listing shows a rating of 5.0 from 3 ratings, a sample too small to draw any real conclusion from.
Wyre, the company that had been issuing and funding the cards, ran into its own troubles. According to news reports, MetaMask ceased Wyre support in January 2023 because Wyre was reportedly closing. The Block later reported that Wyre’s wind-down was announced in June 2023. None of these sources directly tie Cardstack’s Card Pay programme to Wyre’s wider shutdown, but the timing is the key point: by the time Wyre was winding down, the Card Pay app had already stopped selling cards. The card programme did not survive the loss of its issuing partner.
It is also worth noting what the public materials do not say. The card’s network is not stated: it is not declared whether the card ran on Visa, Mastercard or another rail. The card’s currency is not stated. Whether the card was virtual, physical, or both is not stated explicitly, though the listing describes prepaid cards inside the wallet without mentioning a physical delivery process. The card-issuing institution is not named. The developer on the App Store listing is CARDSTACK SERVICES PTE. LTD., and the Cardstack homepage footer names the Cardstack Foundation, but neither is presented as a card issuer in the sense banks and e-money institutions usually are. The “Account on Gnosis Chain” in-app purchase suggests at least part of the wallet worked on Gnosis, an Ethereum sidechain, but the relationship between the wallet, the card and Gnosis is not spelled out in any public material.
In short, the programme ended quietly, without a public closure announcement, and left very little in the way of a paper trail for the curious user.
If you already have the card
If you held a Card Pay prepaid card before December 2022, your situation depends on what is still accessible to you. The app itself is still downloadable on iOS for devices running iOS 13.0 or later, including macOS 11.0+ on Apple M1+ and visionOS 1.0+, and the last version you can install is 1.2.0 from 2023-02-18. Whether your existing card balance is still spendable is not stated in any current public material. There is no support page linked from the App Store listing, only the developer’s website and a privacy policy, and public information about Card Pay is extremely limited.
The things the official materials do not cover are extensive. There is no stated ATM fee schedule. There is no stated spending limit, daily cap, or monthly cap. The funding mechanics are not stated, beyond the listing’s reference to “crypto balances” inside the wallet and the fact that Polygon support was removed in version 1.1.13. Top-up options are not stated. The withdrawal of a card balance, in the sense of taking the remaining prepaid value off the card and back into something spendable, is not stated either. The version notes for 1.0.11 mention “Reward withdrawal” bug fixes, and 1.1.13 says each reward is claimed individually, but those are about claiming tokenised rewards from the wallet, not about pulling a remaining card balance out after the programme closed.
The dispute process is also not stated. There is no published information about chargebacks, transaction errors, or how a cardholder would raise a problem with a transaction.
Here is what this means in practice:
- Your existing card balance may or may not still work, and there is no public statement either way.
- The app may still load, but it has not been updated since February 2023 and the prepaid card purchase path is disabled.
- There is no functioning customer support path, and no dispute procedure you can rely on.
- You should not load any new money into the card, because there is no clarity on whether the card can still be funded or whether funds could be stranded.
For holders, the safest course of action is to look at the alternatives in this review and move on. Treat any remaining balance on the old Card Pay card as money you may or may not be able to recover, and do not leave funds in a closed programme indefinitely.
What can go wrong
Three things are worth being honest about, and they are all on the closed-programme side rather than the cardholder side.
First, the issuing partner is gone. Wyre disabled prepaid card purchases in December 2022 and announced its wind-down in mid-2023. The Pay card was, in practice, a Wyre-issued prepaid card sold through Cardstack’s wallet, and when that issuing path closed, no replacement has been named. If you found a way to use an old Pay card, you would be relying on a payment rail that has been wound down at its source.
Second, the issuer is not named. The card programme has no publicly identified issuer. The developer of the app is CARDSTACK SERVICES PTE. LTD., a Singapore-registered entity, and the Cardstack homepage points to the Cardstack Foundation. Neither is presented as a regulated card issuer in the materials reviewed. This matters because regulated card issuers have obligations around safeguarding customer funds, complaints handling, and orderly wind-down. With Pay, none of that is visible.
Third, the support path is empty. The App Store listing does not link to a support page, only the developer’s site and a privacy policy. There is no Trustpilot page, no Reddit presence, and no public complaints procedure. The 5.0 rating from 3 App Store ratings is not meaningful. If something went wrong with an old card, there is no published way to escalate.
The crypto-side risks are the usual ones for any closed programme. User reports of lost funds are not widely available, which is small comfort given how few people appear to have used the card. But the broader lesson, that closed crypto programmes often leave balances stranded, applies here. If a programme stops issuing cards, the next steps are usually a notice period, then a stop on spending and loading, then a request for users to withdraw their balances. The Pay card programme did not publish any of those steps.
A separate, smaller risk is the polygon removal in version 1.1.13. The wallet used to support Polygon, and that support was removed. If you had Polygon-based assets in the wallet, the path to access them has been narrowed. The in-app “Account on Gnosis Chain” purchase for GBP 0.99 suggests Gnosis became a more central chain, but the materials do not explain what, if anything, was done for users who held Polygon assets.
What to take instead
Three alternatives stand out as practical replacements for a closed crypto prepaid card. Each is scored on the same scale, and each is described below with the facts as published.
TokenPocket (5.8 / 10)
TokenPocket offers a Mastercard or Visa debit card depending on where you live, with a Visa debit card for a list of European countries and territories (Germany, France, Spain, Switzerland among them) and a Mastercard debit card for Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, Japan, Taiwan, New Zealand, Singapore, South Korea, the UK, and others. The Americas rollout is described as “planned for Q2 2025.”
The card runs on Arbitrum. Fiat24 cards, which is the issuing partner, are virtual only, with no physical card mentioned. Balances are held in EUR24 and USD24, the stablecoin-style tokens Fiat24 issues.
On cost, TokenPocket says that the NFT creation fee is partly covered by them, with the user paying only “a small portion” (the amount is not stated). Apart from that, “TP Card does not charge any additional fees.” There is a 1% fee when depositing cryptocurrency into the TP Card, which the company says “will later be refunded to users through rewards, reduced transaction fees, etc.” Foreign exchange fees are not stated, and extra fees can come from inter-institution settlement. There is no cashback programme.
Funding comes from the TokenPocket wallet, which is an Arbitrum-based wallet. Specific coins and networks are not listed in the FAQ.
MetaMask (7.1 / 10)
MetaMask issues a Mastercard through Monovate (issuer) and Crypto Life (card provider). Sign-up is open in 45 listed countries and territories, with examples including Andorra, Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Mexico, Germany, France, Spain and Uruguay. Other regions join a waitlist. Proof of residency is required. The FAQ notes that US and UK sign-ups are temporarily closed. Citizenship rules are not stated.
The card is a virtual Mastercard first, issued instantly. A Metal card can be pre-ordered in the app after the virtual card is approved. One card per user. Card currency is not stated.
The virtual card is free, with no annual or maintenance fee. The Metal card is $199 per year. MetaMask says there is “a minimal fee for each transaction,” though the amount is not stated on the pages reviewed, and “no additional MetaMask fees.” There is no foreign transaction fee; the Mastercard rate is used.
The card spends directly from the connected wallet. Networks supported are Linea, Base, Monad and Solana. Tokens named are mUSD, wETH, EURe, GBPe, USDC and USDT, with the page saying nine in total. Solana-only wallets cannot withdraw credit.
Cashback is paid in mUSD into the Money Account. Virtual is 1%. Metal is 3% headline, but a footnote limits the 3% to the first $10,000 spent, then drops to 1%. There is also a $FLY bonus of 5X (Virtual) or 7X (Metal) via the Blackbird dining app.
KAST (6.1 / 10)
KAST offers virtual and physical Visa cards, up to 10 cards per user, in three tiers: Visa Platinum (Standard), Visa Infinite metal (Premium) and Visa Infinite gold-plated (Private). There are also special designs: Pengu, Solana and Bitcoin. The account balance is in USD, with stablecoin deposits converted 1:1 at a 0% spread.
Eligibility is residence-based. The KYC screen says “if your country isn’t listed, it means KAST is not available there,” but the full country list is not published. A Restricted Locations list is referenced without countries named. Citizenship and ID also matter: someone who lives in a supported country but only holds an ID from a restricted region may still be ineligible, while dual citizens with an ID from a supported country may pass. Only the account holder’s own ID is accepted, and a VPN does not bypass the check. An account can be created in an unsupported country, but KYC stays locked.
Annual membership is paid up front: Standard $0, Premium $1,000 and Private $10,000, with no monthly option. An extra virtual card costs $2, and in some regions that $2 also applies to the included Standard virtual card. The Standard physical card has a $0 card fee plus $40 delivery; Premium and Private physical cards are included. There is an inactivity fee of $1 per month after 12 months, and renewal or reactivation fees, with amounts not stated.
On transaction fees: stablecoin top-up is 0%, card spend in USD is 0%, transaction fee is 0%, and Apple Pay and Google Pay are 0%. Non-USD FX fees are 0.5% to 1.75%, depending on residence country, transaction country and card programme. Non-USD transactions under $25 cost $0.10. A declined transaction for insufficient balance costs $0.50. Non-stablecoin tokens may be auto-converted at a fee shown in the app.
Funding is in stablecoins: USDT, USDC, PYUSD and RLUSD. USDT and USDC are supported on Ethereum, Solana, Polygon, Arbitrum and TRON, with the app listing the current networks. No bank account is needed. The terms say acceptable tokens are “currently USDT and USDC,” which conflicts with the in-app support for PYUSD and RLUSD. Spending is from the user’s own balance, and each purchase is deducted immediately, not as credit.
USD cashback is tiered: Standard 1.5% on the first $2,000 per month, Premium 2% on the first $10,000 per month, and Private 3% on the first $40,000 per month. KAST Points add another +1% for Premium and +2% for Private, on eligible spend. Cashback is paid in USD when the transaction is authorised.
How they compare
| Feature | TokenPocket | MetaMask | KAST |
|---|---|---|---|
| Network | Mastercard or Visa, depending on country | Mastercard | Visa |
| Card form | Virtual only | Virtual, plus Metal | Virtual and physical |
| Annual fee | Not stated; NFT creation fee partly covered | Free virtual; $199/year Metal | $0 / $1,000 / $10,000 by tier |
| Funding | Crypto from TP wallet (Arbitrum) | Direct from connected wallet | Stablecoins on multiple networks |
| Cashback | None stated (1% deposit fee refundable) | 1% virtual; up to 3% Metal (capped) | 1.5% to 3% USD, plus KAST Points |
| Where it works | EU Visa, several APAC Mastercard | 45 countries; waitlist elsewhere | Residence-based, list not published |
The right pick depends on your location and your priorities. MetaMask is the most openly published and works in the most countries, with the most transparent reward structure. KAST is the most ambitious in product design, with physical cards and tiers, but the cost and the unpublished country list raise the bar. TokenPocket fits if you are in one of the listed European or Asia-Pacific countries and want a simple virtual card.
Who I would recommend it to
Almost no one. The Pay card is not available to new users, the issuing partner is gone, and the app has been unmaintained since February 2023. The only people for whom this review might be useful are existing holders of an old Card Pay prepaid card, and even for them the practical answer is the same: do not add new funds, do not expect new features, and look at the alternatives for any new spending.
If you live in a country where MetaMask, KAST or TokenPocket operate and you want a real crypto card that is currently issuing, pick one of those instead. The Pay card as a product is finished.
Frequently asked questions
What is the Pay card?
The Pay card was a prepaid crypto card managed inside a mobile app called Card Pay, developed by Cardstack. New cards are no longer being issued: prepaid card purchases via Wyre were disabled in December 2022, and the app was last updated in February 2023.
How does the Pay card work?
It was a prepaid card: you would fund it from the wallet’s crypto balance, and the card would spend that loaded balance. Public materials do not state the card’s network, currency, or whether it had a physical version. The in-app “Account on Gnosis Chain” purchase for GBP 0.99 suggests the wallet worked on Gnosis, but the card’s own mechanics are not described in detail.
Is Pay a bank?
No. The developer listed on the App Store is CARDSTACK SERVICES PTE. LTD., and the Cardstack homepage names the Cardstack Foundation. No bank or e-money institution is publicly identified as the card issuer. The Pay card programme was, in practice, a prepaid card issued through the payments company Wyre, which itself wound down in 2023.
Who owns Pay?
The app is owned by CARDSTACK SERVICES PTE. LTD. The Cardstack Foundation appears on the company’s homepage. Neither is presented as a regulated card issuer. The card’s issuing bank or e-money institution is not named in any public material reviewed.
Is the Pay card available in my country?
Not for new applicants. The programme has been closed since December 2022. The card’s own country and residency rules are not stated in public materials, so there is no list of supported countries to check against.
How do I apply for the Pay card?
You cannot. The path to buy a new prepaid card was disabled in the December 2022 app update, and no replacement has been announced.
Does the Pay card require KYC?
The app’s KYC requirements are not stated in the public materials reviewed. The card was sold through Wyre, which had its own KYC procedures, but those are no longer in effect.
How do I top up the Pay card?
Top-up options are not stated in current public materials. The wallet mentions crypto balances, and Polygon support was removed in version 1.1.13. Because the card purchase path is disabled, topping up an existing card is not something you can rely on doing today.
How do I withdraw money from the Pay card?
The materials do not describe a card-balance withdrawal process. The version notes mention “reward withdrawal” bug fixes and individual reward claims, but those are about tokenised rewards inside the wallet, not about taking a remaining card balance out. Treat any old card balance as potentially unrecoverable.
Is the Pay card safe?
Because the issuing partner is gone, the issuer is not named, the app has had no updates since February 2023, and there is no functioning customer support path, an old Pay card carries unusual risk compared to a current programme. Holding funds in a closed programme of any kind is riskier than holding them in a current, regulated card.
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