This interview explores how XMR.CARDS enables Monero users to purchase gift cards privately, how the platform works, and the team’s broader vision around financial privacy.
1. How did XMR.CARDS get started, and what problem were you trying to solve for Monero users?
Gift cards have always been one of the most popular ways to spend cryptocurrency in real life. While checking out existing options, we realized there was no complete solution that allowed users to purchase gift cards in a truly private way using Monero. XMR.CARDS was created to provide a completely secure and anonymous way for Monero users to convert their crypto into gift cards.
2. Why did you decide to focus specifically on Monero instead of supporting many cryptocurrencies from the beginning?
While supporting multiple cryptocurrencies could broaden our potential audience, we chose to focus on Monero because it is the only cryptocurrency that offers true privacy by default. This way we can operate our service without compromising privacy of our clients at all.
3. For someone new to XMR.CARDS, can you walk through how the ordering process works from payment to receiving a gift card?
Navigate to xmr.cards and filter gift card brands by your country. Select a brand, enter the desired gift card value, and create your order. No personal information collected (not even an email address), so it’s important to bookmark your order page to access your gift card details later. After creating the order, you’ll be shown the exact payment amount and a Monero wallet address. Once your payment receives 10 block confirmations on the Monero network, your gift card code is automatically issued and available on your order page.
4. What types of gift cards are most popular with your users, and have you noticed any trends over time?
E-commerce gift cards such as Amazon and eBay, along with travel-related gift cards like Airbnb and Hotels.com, are the most popular among our users across all supported countries.
5. Your site has a Tor mirror, what helped drive the decision to have it?
We provide a Tor mirror to enhance user privacy and security. While we do not collect any personal data, Tor ensures that connections remain fully anonymous. Tor is the recommended way for maximum anonymity however access through VPN is also supported.
6. Which prepaid cards do you currently sell and do you have plans to add more?
We have American Express gift cards and Rewarble gift cards currently, our primary focus, however, is on brand-specific gift cards rather than general prepaid cards.
7. What regions or countries do you currently support, and are there plans to expand availability?
We currently support over 2000 brands across more than 60 countries. We are exploring possibilities to expand our availability and bring our services to all countries.
8. How do you deal with over or under payments, timeouts, and other user errors?
Underpayments and overpayments are handled manually by our support team. If an issue occurs, an alert on the order page directs users to contact support so it can be resolved as quickly as possible. We offer support through SimpleX and Telegram along with email (PGP).
9. Is your catalog stable or do new cards get added or removed over time?
Our catalog is continuously updated to ensure a seamless user experience. New brands are added periodically, while out-of-stock or unavailable cards are removed to prevent delivery issues.
10. What would you like Monero users to know about XMR.CARDS that you don't think they know right now?
We, as a team, are true believers in financial privacy, and we fight to make it accessible to everyone. XMR.CARDS isn’t just about gift cards. The idea is to provide stable and private solution for Monero users to cash out their crypto without compromising their anonymity.
