Policy and Re2026-09-18 12:22:00Kulipa collapse highlights why digital nomads need more than a crypto debit cardA PANews article argues that the failure of stablecoin card issuer Kulipa exposed a deeper weakness in the crypto card market: many products rely on rented licenses and BIN sponsorship rather than bank accounts owned by end users. After Kulipa halted operations on July 29, 2026 over solvency issues, about 20 wallet and fintech clients including Solflare, Ready, Flutterwave and nSave saw their card programs disrupted, with some users learning their cards had stopped working only at the point of payment. The piece says this is not an isolated case. It points to Quicko losing its payment license in Poland, three crypto cards failing 13 days later, and Mastercard shutting down UnCash’s no-KYC card. In the author’s view, the core problem is structural: the visible crypto brand often does not control the actual payment rails. Instead, a licensed bank or e-money institution behind the scenes holds the power to keep cards running or shut them off. The article contrasts that model with embedded banking partnerships used by firms such as Dogpay, Plasma and Redotpay, where users can open bank accounts in their own names. It argues that digital nomads need an integrated setup that combines receiving funds, holding balances, spending, merchant acquiring and off-ramping, rather than a card that only handles payments.610
Ready2026-08-07 10:24:53Ready App to Migrate to Base Network This Month, Eligible Users Can Get Ready Card AgainSelf-custody wallet Ready said its app will migrate to the Base network later this month. Eligible users will be able to get the Ready Card again, subject to regional availability. In late July, Ready suspended card services after issuer Kulipa ceased operations; user funds were unaffected.2120
Kulipa2026-08-02 01:47:10Kulipa shuts down over insolvency, halting stablecoin card programs for about 20 clientsParis-based stablecoin card infrastructure provider Kulipa has stopped operating after what it described as solvency problems, abruptly disabling all cards tied to its platform and affecting roughly 20 wallet and fintech clients, including Solflare, Ready, Flutterwave, and nSave. The company had presented itself as a white-label infrastructure layer for crypto card programs rather than a direct consumer brand, and had said it issued more than 120,000 cards after launching its infrastructure in February 2025. Kulipa had also disclosed about $9.2 million in total funding across two rounds. Its $6.2 million seed round was led by Flourish Ventures and 1kx, with participation from White Star Capital and Fabric Ventures, completed in December 2025 and disclosed in April this year. Despite that funding and a leadership team with backgrounds at Mastercard, Spendesk, Google, WhatsApp, Nickel, Lemonway, and Binance France, the company shut down roughly seven months after its latest financing round. Public comments from partners show different risk profiles across client types. Self-custody wallet partners such as Solflare and Ready said user assets were safe because funds were only debited from users’ own wallets at the moment of payment. By contrast, custody-based fintech models can involve pre-funded balances. nSave said it was affected about a month earlier, gave users five days to spend remaining card balances or switch cards, and reported no losses.2060
Kulipa2026-07-31 02:40:48Kulipa shuts down, disrupting card programs tied to about 20 crypto walletsParis-based startup Kulipa has abruptly ceased operations over debt repayment issues, according to The Defiant, triggering a halt in card programs used by roughly 20 crypto wallet and fintech companies. The disruption hit self-custody wallet Ready, formerly Argent, and Solana wallet Solflare, with card services suspended immediately for users. The report said user assets were not affected because both wallets use a self-custody model in which funds are debited from users’ wallets only at the time of spending. The shutdown came only about four months after Kulipa raised $6.2 million in a seed round co-led by Flourish Ventures and 1kx in April this year. The episode highlights how operational failures at infrastructure providers can interrupt consumer-facing crypto payment products even when underlying user funds remain untouched.2030
Solflare2026-07-29 00:43:54Solflare Card suspended after partner Kulipa halts operations over solvency issuesSolflare Card has been suspended after Kulipa, the card-issuing partner behind the product, stopped operating because of solvency issues, according to a post on X by Solflare co-founder Vidor. He said user funds remain safe because the card runs on an end-to-end self-custody model: charges are deducted directly from users’ wallets, with no need to preload funds or top up balances, and no customer assets are held by the issuer. Vidor also said the Solflare team had tried to help Kulipa find a buyer and explored ways to keep the service going, but those efforts did not succeed. A new version of Solflare Card is already in development and is expected to launch within weeks. The upcoming version will keep the same self-custody structure while adding Apple Pay, Google Pay, higher spending limits, and cashback features.2430
