Crypto Payments Firm Truther to Launch Non-Custodial USDT Visa Card in El Salvador

What to know:

• Crypto payments company Truther is launching a card in El Salvador on Jan. 29, allowing users to spend USDT directly from their self-custody wallets via a partnership with Visa.
• The card doesn't require preloading funds or custodial services, and carries a 2% fee on currency conversions, with no IOF tax for Brazilian users.
• Truther plans to expand its services to other countries, including Argentina, Mexico, and Colombia, and will integrate more local stablecoins into its self-custody wallet by early 2025.

SÃO PAULO — Crypto payments company Truther plans to launch a card in El Salvador on January 29, with Visa through a third-party, which allows users to spend USDT directly from their wallets without needing to preload funds or rely on custodial services.

The product, revealed during an interview with CoinDesk at the Blockchain Conference Brasil, draws funds from Truther’s self-custody wallet at the moment of purchase. The card is expected have a 2% fee on currency conversions, yet this could still change. For Brazilian users, it won’t carry the IOF tax on financial transactions. After the launch in El Salvador, the card will be available to all of Truther’s users.

The card will have a system wherein users send funds to it in just a few seconds, allowing them to ensure that only the exact amount that's being paid is available for use. Users will be able to determine for how long that charge will remain active.

“You charge the card beforehand,” said founder Rocelo Lopes. “If you're at a hotel and the bill is 30 euros, it deducts the USDT equivalent in real time.”

The move could make stablecoin spending more practical for travelers and crypto users who want to avoid converting to fiat or holding balances on centralized platforms. Unlike traditional crypto cards, which often require users to top up or use custodial accounts, Truther’s integration preserves full user control through a private wallet that runs on the Polygon blockchain, with plans to migrate to the Liquid network for increased privacy, Lopes added.

The Visa card builds on Truther’s existing infrastructure, which already processes $40 million in daily volume by connecting stablecoins like USDT to Brazil’s instant payment system PIX. It comes after Visa started piloting stablecoin payouts for creators and gig workers.