What Gnosis Pay Was: A Non-Custodial Card for Self-Custody Builders
Gnosis Pay arrived as an EOA-based Visa card backed by Gnosis Safe, the self-custody standard. Unlike Crypto.com or Coinbase (which custody your crypto), Gnosis Pay let you spend directly from your own Ethereum wallet. You held the private keys. The card became popular with self-custody maximalists who refused to deposit assets with a centralized exchange.
Signal: Non-custodial Visa cards appeal to a small, passionate audience—builders who already use Gnosis Safe, users in regions without access to CEX cards, and privacy-focused traders. The market for this product exists, but it’s smaller than the CEX-card market.
Market data shows Gnosis Pay captured approximately 2.6 % of the non-custodial (on-chain) card volume as of early 2026, with cumulative spending around $167 million. It was the third-largest non-custodial card by volume, after RedotPay and ether.fi Cash.
Why Gnosis Pay Closed Its Affiliate Program
In late 2024 through early 2025, Gnosis Pay wound down its direct affiliate program. The company announced a pivot to B2B partnerships—working exclusively with institutional partners, corporate treasuries, and white-label payment providers. Consumer affiliate signup bonuses (historically around €30 per active user) ended.
The reason: The consumer crypto-card market is consolidating. Non-custodial cards are a niche product, and the cost of acquiring individual users via affiliate marketing outweighs the LTV from small-balance holders. Gnosis shifted strategy to embed its card infrastructure into larger platforms (like Zeal in the EU and Picnic in Brazil), where the distribution already exists.
Key metric: Direct consumer acquisition for non-custodial cards costs approximately 2–3× more per user than CEX-card acquisition, because the audience is smaller and more dispersed. Affiliate revenue ($30 per signup) doesn’t justify the customer-acquisition cost.
Today, Gnosis Pay is still operational for existing users. If you already have a Gnosis Safe wallet with an active Gnosis Pay card, you can continue spending. But new users cannot sign up directly—they must go through a B2B partner like Zeal (EU) or Picnic (Brazil).
ether.fi Cash: The Non-Custodial Alternative That’s Actually Growing
While Gnosis Pay retreated to B2B, ether.fi Cash has emerged as the leader in non-custodial crypto cards. Here’s why it matters for anyone seeking self-custody payments:
Cashback & rewards: ether.fi Cash offers up to 3 % cashback on all purchases. Unlike Gnosis Pay’s varying partner rewards, ether.fi has standardized, transparent rates.
Custody model: Like Gnosis Pay, ether.fi Cash is self-custodial—your ETH stays in your wallet, staked if you choose. You control the keys. The card is linked to your non-custodial balance.
FX & fees: Zero foreign-exchange fees on USD and EUR. A 1 % FX fee applies to all other currencies. ATM withdrawals incur a 2 % fee. Physical card deposits are refundable ($40 Core tier).
Market dominance: ether.fi Cash holds approximately 6.4 % of non-custodial card volume ($405M), and is the second-largest non-custodial card globally, trending upward. Why the growth? Staking rewards. Users stake their ETH through ether.fi, earn yield, and then spend the card without selling. The “yield while spending” angle is unique.
Signal: If you’re choosing between a non-custodial card and a CEX card, the decision matrix is: non-custodial if you value self-custody and are willing to hold ETH long-term; CEX if you need instant fiat conversion and don’t mind counterparty risk.
Affiliate availability: Unlike Gnosis Pay, ether.fi Cash actively recruits affiliates. You can sign up for the ether.fi affiliate program and earn recurring commissions (0.1 % to 0.3 %, tiered). This article itself is part of that program.
Gnosis Pay vs. ether.fi Cash: Side-by-Side
Both are non-custodial, so the comparison is about cashback, fees, and ecosystem:
Cashback: ether.fi offers a standardized 3 % base. Gnosis Pay varies by partner (now limited to B2B integrations).
Network: Both operate on Ethereum. ether.fi also supports Scroll network staking.
Availability: Gnosis Pay is available in EU, Brazil, select regions via B2B partners. ether.fi Cash is available in 76 countries for shipping, with 20 outright prohibited (e.g., Russia, China, India, Netherlands). See country availability for details.
Yield: ether.fi integrates staking—earn while you hold. Gnosis Pay does not explicitly offer staking rewards, though integration is possible via Gnosis Safe plugins.
Affiliate program: Gnosis Pay closed to new affiliates. ether.fi is actively recruiting.
Why it matters: If you’re building on Gnosis Safe and want a card, you now need a B2B partner (Zeal / Picnic). If you’re a self-custody user anywhere else globally, ether.fi Cash is the most accessible non-custodial option with the most generous cashback.
Risk: Non-custodial cards are still emerging. Infrastructure risk exists—if the card provider fails, your wallet still owns your crypto, but the card service stops. This is lower risk than CEX custody, but higher than holding stablecoins on a CEX.
Risk & Disclosure
Affiliate disclosure (repeated): DefyCard publishes affiliate links for ether.fi Cash and other crypto-card providers. When you sign up through our links, we may earn a commission. This does not affect your pricing; the referral rates are standard. See our privacy policy for details.
Crypto-asset volatility: Non-custodial cards are linked to crypto balances (ETH, in ether.fi’s case). If the price of ETH drops, your card balance decreases. Spending from a non-custodial card is not a hedge against crypto price risk—it’s just a payment method for existing holders.
Country restrictions: Both Gnosis Pay and ether.fi Cash are subject to regulatory restrictions. Always verify your country/state eligibility before applying. If you’re in a prohibited region, consider CEX-backed cards (Crypto.com, Coinbase, Bybit) instead.
Operational risk: Non-custodial card infrastructure is newer and smaller than CEX-card infrastructure. There is a non-zero chance of service disruption, feature removal, or integration issues. This risk is lower than counterparty risk with a CEX, but higher than traditional payment cards.