Tether has partnered with digital banking and investment platform Fasset to launch a gold-backed Visa neobanking card, giving users a way to spend at Visa merchants worldwide. Under the model described in the company announcement, users can have their XAU₮ converted into USD₮ in seconds during checkout, before the funds are exchanged into fiat to complete the purchase. The product is built for everyday payments, not just for holding tokenized gold.
The companies are targeting high-growth markets across Asia and Africa. Tether said the arrangement combines Fasset’s regional infrastructure with Tether’s global liquidity, aiming to move tokenized gold beyond its traditional role as a store of value and into routine spending use cases, especially in regions dealing with currency volatility.
Up to 6% in XAU₮ rewards and automatic round-up investing
The card includes a rewards system tied directly to spending activity. According to the announcement, eligible transactions can receive up to 6% cashback in XAU₮, with rewards deposited instantly into a user’s Fasset wallet. It also adds an automatic round-up feature that takes spare change from daily transactions and invests that amount into XAU₮.
Tether said it will commit up to $1 million in XAU₮ to support the rewards program. That puts spending, incentives, and gold accumulation into one product flow, while keeping the settlement layer tied to fiat payments through the Visa network.
Tether points to a $5.3 billion tokenized gold market
The announcement states that the global market capitalization of tokenized digital gold has surpassed $5.3 billion. Within that segment, XAU₮, backed by one troy ounce of London Good Delivery gold, accounts for more than $2.6 billion. Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino said gold has historically been treated as a store-of-value asset, while this initiative is designed to connect it with real-world payment rails and make it usable across borders with less friction.
Fasset CEO Mohammad Raafi Hossain said the platform’s annualized transaction volume has reached $32 billion, with the majority tied to real-world assets. He said the partnership and Fasset’s distribution network are intended to help make Tether Gold one of the most widely held digital gold tokens in emerging markets.