The last few times I got a prepaid debit card with Bitcoin, I regretted it. Feels like just a bit less than a year ago they were much more reliable and more widely accepted. Actual Bitcoin adoption can’t come fast enough for me.
Discussion
I bought $100USD Visa card (virtual) via TBC with the intention of linking it to google pay. While this was no fault of TBC, the issuer immediately blocked my card as soon as I attempted my first purchase.
The instructions on TBC suggested testing the a lower value card first. I bought $10 and it worked without issue.
The issuer acknowledged they blocked the card. I asked them to unlock it and I'd use it "virtually" for online purchases. They wouldn't do that. They would only offer a refund by a cheque and the requirement to completely dox myself with email, phone, address to mail cheque etc. I laughed out loud and told the agent the whole reason I bought the card was to protect my privacy.
Needless to say, I didn't provide my info. I chalked it up as a costly lesson.
Fiat rails don't play nice with Bitcoin and in order to use the fiat system you've got to pass the KYC/AML shenanigans.
We need more merchants accepting LN both online and at POS
Oh wow this is a worse experience than any of mine. So far I haven’t lost any money, just a lot of time and patience
Some lessons are expensive, 😬
Glad to share my tale of woe to help others from repeating the same.
I was also a little reckless when lightning first launched, so I guess it's in my nature 😅