By now, virtual cards are an established part of the payment landscape. They’re issued by banks, linked to digital wallets, and embedded into workflows across nearly every industry from marketing and procurement to freelance payouts and subscription tools. But the infrastructure behind these cards is changing. What was once a convenience feature is evolving into a new foundation for payments.
The next generation of virtual cards introduces not just new capabilities, but a new architecture. And for the first time, that architecture includes self-custody, EMV compatibility, and blockchain-native logic.
At NAKA, this evolution represents a redesign of what it means to own, issue, and spend value in a modern economy.
A Brief Look Back: How Virtual Cards Got Here
Virtual cards were initially introduced as fraud mitigation tools, simple digital versions of credit or debit cards with short lifespans and limited-use cases. The earliest adopters used them to separate online purchases from main accounts, minimizing exposure in case of data breaches. Financial institutions offered them quietly, usually as add-ons to existing card programs.
Once APIs and embedded financial tooling matured, fintechs and neobanks expanded the use of virtual cards. These newer platforms created more flexible issuance options: single-use cards, cards with adjustable limits, cards tied to specific vendors or budgets. Corporate finance teams began using them to streamline employee expenses and track spend at the card level.
The value of these tools became undeniable. According to Juniper Research, the volume of virtual card transactions is projected to exceed $5.2 trillion in 2025, with 235% growth forecasted through 2029. This reflects adoption across both consumer and enterprise segments, with growing use cases in digital advertising, travel, SaaS, and logistics.
The next shift came with the rise of stablecoins and crypto wallets. Around 2017–2019, a new wave of users began asking a simple question: if I hold digital assets, why can’t I spend them directly?
Crypto card programs began surfacing, mostly custodial and limited by region or compliance scope. They relied on preloading, fiat conversion, or partnerships with exchanges. Still, they marked the first real attempt to merge virtual card rails with digital currencies.
What was missing then is now being built: real integration between on-chain asset ownership and real-world payment systems including models that support self-custody, programmability, and real-time execution.
This is the moment virtual cards stop being just a convenience layer and start becoming infrastructure.
What the Next Wave of Virtual Cards Will Deliver
The virtual card model is entering a new phase that is shaped by programmable assets, decentralized custody, and demand for more adaptable payment layers.
A report from Deloitte notes that finance departments are moving toward “programmable money infrastructure”, tools that embed tokenization, security conditions, and transparency directly into the payment process. In this vision, cards are not only payment instruments but operational extensions of policy, compliance, and automation.
The expectations are shifting:
- Finance teams want real-time issuance without compliance delays.
- Users want autonomy over their digital assets.
- Enterprises want rails that work in every region without constant manual reconciliation.
These goals can no longer be served by static, closed infrastructure.
NAKA’s Approach: A New Form of Card Infrastructure
NAKA’s virtual card system is built on the two foundational pillars redefining modern crypto payments: self-custody and EMV compatibility.
In the self-custodial model, users maintain full control of their assets. Funds stay in the user’s wallet until the point of payment, with no need to preload or hand over custody to a third party. Every transaction is authorized directly from the user’s wallet, preserving autonomy while ensuring security.
On the acceptance side, NAKA’s payment terminals are built with full EMV compatibility. This means merchants using NAKA can accept standard cards with no added integration, and users can pay with crypto-backed cards in a familiar, tap-to-pay experience just like they’re used to.
While self-custody is central to this evolution, NAKA also supports custodial flows for businesses that require managed infrastructure, allowing both models to operate on the same compliant rails. That adaptability is what enables us to serve a wide range of partners from local retailers to payment providers without compromising compliance or user experience.
For a deeper look at how NAKA’s virtual card system was built, this interview with our CPO Luka Paragi outlines the core design decisions, implementation challenges, and how the team balanced user control with real-world compatibility.
Why This Matters for Businesses and Ecosystems
In emerging markets, where traditional banking is fragmented or inaccessible, virtual cards built on decentralized rails offer a viable payment solution for independent earners, remote teams, and small businesses. These users often face long settlement times, high FX costs, or unreliable cross-border wires. A programmable card that interacts directly with stablecoins or on-chain assets gives them access to faster, more reliable commerce.
For companies with global operations, this means less reliance on regional banks or payment aggregators. A self-custodial EMV card can unify multi-currency workflows, reduce reconciliation overhead, and improve control over liquidity.
NAKA’s Card offering supports both custodial and non-custodial flows, providing flexibility based on geography, use case, and regulatory requirements. With native support for stablecoins and programmable settlement logic, it adapts to the needs of fintechs, platforms, and real-world commerce.
Looking Ahead
Virtual crypto payment cards are becoming the baseline for how businesses and individuals issue, control, and complete transactions.
The infrastructure will continue evolving toward greater user control, faster execution, and smarter integration. In this future, cards are defined by who controls them, how they work, and what they can do beyond a payment.
NAKA’s contribution to this evolution lies in bridging what users expect from crypto with what the payment world already understands: speed, reliability, and acceptance at scale.
That bridge is already live. And it looks a lot like the future of payments.
