Karta.io is a crypto card service inside Telegram. Top it up with USDT or USDC and pay with a Visa virtual card. It is a different company from the Karta Visa Infinite US charge card often discussed in Taiwan’s IBKR circles. Issuance currently costs 5 USDT, with no annual fee. Compare it with other cards in the crypto card comparison. See what to know before applying for fees and risks. Availability is confirmed in Taiwan; check your country before applying.
What Is Karta? Company Background
Karta.io is operated by Karta Finance Inc, registered in Delaware, USA. The company says it has operated since September 2021. It offers Karta Personal for individuals and Karta Business for teams. This article covers Karta Personal. Its co-founders are CEO Nik Zimarkov and CTO Matt Aliev.
In May 2026, Karta said it had more than 25,000 active cardholders per month. The service is currently available only through Telegram; iOS and Android apps are planned. Its official X account is @Karta_Personal.
The card runs on the Visa Signature network and is issued in Puerto Rico. The issuer is Third National (Nimbus LLC), a licensed money transmitter in Puerto Rico and part of the Rain group. Karta says it is a financial technology company, not a bank, and that it is not FDIC-insured.
Karta Rewards and Card Benefits
This section summarizes the fees and benefits of the Karta Personal virtual card.
| Item | Karta Personal virtual card |
|---|---|
| Issuance fee | 5 USDT (regular price: 30 USDT) |
| Cardholder cashback | None listed |
| Annual, monthly, and inactivity fees | 0 |
| Card payment fee | 1.5% per transaction, including USD purchases |
| Non-USD purchase cost | 2.5% (1.5% plus Visa’s 1%) |
| Replacement card | 15 USDT |
| Per-transaction limit | US$25,000 |
| Visa Signature benefits | Airport lounge access (fixed rates), GigSky eSIM 1 GB, rental car insurance up to 31 days, purchase protection up to 180 days, extended warranty, concierge service |
Register for Visa Signature benefits through Visa’s portal and select Puerto Rico as the card’s issuing country. Lounge access is charged at fixed rates; it is not free.
Referral rewards go only to the person who invites others. See Karta review and comparison for more details.
Karta Fees
- Issuance: 5 USDT for a virtual card.
- Annual, monthly, and inactivity fees: all 0.
- Card payments: 1.5% per transaction, including USD purchases.
- Non-USD purchases: Visa adds 1%. A Taiwan-dollar purchase costs 2.5% in total; a USD-billed merchant (such as a subscription priced in USD) costs 1.5% only.
- Top-ups: USDT and USDC deposits on Polygon, Base, Optimism, BNB Smart Chain, Arbitrum, Solana, and Ethereum are free, with a 1 USDT minimum. Tron accepts USDT only, costs 5.90 USDT per deposit, and has a 15 USDT minimum.
- Replacement card: 15 USDT.
- Disputes: 30 USDT is held for each dispute. It is returned if the dispute succeeds and charged if it fails.
- Refunds: the card payment fee is not returned when a purchase is refunded.
Deposits from any supported chain are converted into the same USDT balance, and the card is denominated in US dollars. See Karta’s full fee details.
Know Before Applying
- US citizens cannot apply. The publicly listed prohibited jurisdictions also include China, India, Russia, Turkey, Vietnam, and others.
- Karta can suspend your account or card at any time, without giving a reason. Funds deposited from sanctioned exchanges such as Garantex, HTX, and Nobitex may be frozen or not returned immediately.
- USD-billed merchants incur only the 1.5% card fee. Other currencies also incur Visa’s 1% fee on every transaction.
- The card cannot be used at merchants in categories such as gambling, dating, political or religious organizations, securities brokerage, money transfers, and remittances.
How to Apply for Karta (Where to Enter a Referral Link)
- Open
karta.social/ec96aa6701from the referral button above to launch the Karta bot and mini app in Telegram. Telegram Web also works. - Tap “Verify Your Identity,” accept the terms, complete the questionnaire and personal details, choose an identity document, scan it, and complete the liveness check.
- Wait for review. Karta says approval is usually instant but can take up to 5 days.
- Top up with USDT or USDC, tap “Visa Virtual,” and pay 5 USDT to issue the card. It usually activates within an hour.
- Add the card to Apple Pay or Google Pay if you want to.
For the basics of stablecoins, see the stablecoin storage guide. For another USDT virtual card, see the Tria card application guide.
Using the Card in Taiwan
I confirmed that people in Taiwan can apply. Taiwan is on Apple’s official list of supported residence countries for Apple Pay, but Apple may still decline to add the card based on its risk checks. Each card can be activated in up to 5 wallets within 24 hours and 10 within 90 days. Google Pay is also officially supported.
JKOPay cannot be linked because it accepts only credit cards issued by domestic partner banks, while Karta is issued in Puerto Rico.
3-D Secure verification codes are sent by email or phone.
