Lagos, Nigeria, June 22nd, 2026, FinanceWire
Cardtonic, a leading African fintech super-app, today announced the launch of its Platinum Card, a virtual dollar card built for Apple Pay and Google Pay integration, NFC contactless payments, and stablecoin funding. The card is designed to close the gap between online and in-store spending, giving users a single tool for both digital and physical global payments.
The Platinum Card extends Cardtonic’s existing virtual dollar card offering, which has so far been limited to online transactions. With this launch, users can now tap to pay in physical stores using their phones, without needing a separate physical card.
Closing the Gap Between Digital and Physical Spending
Consumers today subscribe to international platforms, shop on global stores, and pay for digital services from home, but many still run into failed transactions, card restrictions, and compatibility issues when spending abroad or in physical stores.
Conventional virtual dollar cards solve the online half of that problem but cannot be used at a checkout counter. The Cardtonic Platinum Card addresses both. With Apple Pay and Google Pay integration, a user can subscribe to Spotify, pay for AI tools, and shop at a walk-in store in Paris using the same card they use to shop online from Lagos.
Built on NFC, Encryption, and Stablecoin Funding
The card’s standout feature is NFC technology, which lets users pay by holding their phone near a payment terminal, removing the need for a physical card altogether.
Security was treated as a core requirement rather than an add-on. The Platinum Card runs on advanced encryption technology designed to protect user data and funds throughout every transaction, in line with international payment security standards.
Users can also fund the card directly with USDT and USDC, allowing instant top-ups without routing through a bank, before spending globally.
Part of a Broader Pattern of Building What Users Ask For
Cardtonic started as a self-bootstrapped gift card trading platform and has since expanded into bill payments, eSIMs, and now the Platinum Card, each product built in response to a specific gap users were already running into rather than a feature added for its own sake.
As global digital spending continues to grow among freelancers, travellers, and businesses operating across borders, the company says the Platinum Card reflects its broader approach: build only what users are already asking for, and build it to work everywhere they need it to.
Users can add the card to Google Pay or Apple Pay directly from the Cardtonic app.
About Cardtonic
Cardtonic is a fast-growing fintech super-app enabling payments beyond borders through alternative channels such as virtual dollar cards and digital assets. The platform serves more than 1.8 million active users, providing frictionless access to global payments, secure gift card exchange, international bills, and digital connectivity via eSIMs.
With a strong culture of discipline, speed, and customer trust, Cardtonic gives Africans the freedom to transact globally without relying solely on traditional banking rails. For more information, uses can visit www.cardtonic.com.
Contact
Client Account Manager
Adedolapo Oni
Memoir Communications
clients@memoir-communications.com
