Lemon’s Bitcoin-Backed Credit Card: Argentinian Fintech Makes Crypto Spendable in 2026

Forget selling your Bitcoin to pay for groceries—one South American fintech just turned your HODL into a spending spree.

The Crypto-Card Crossover

Argentinian crypto app Lemon launched a credit card that uses Bitcoin as collateral, letting users spend fiat currency without liquidating their digital assets. It’s a direct shot at the traditional finance model—why sell your appreciating asset when you can borrow against it?

Bypassing the Old Guard

The card cuts banks out of the lending equation. Users lock up Bitcoin as security, draw credit in local currency, and repay to unlock their collateral. No credit checks, no lengthy approvals—just crypto doing what it does best: disrupting legacy systems. It’s a pragmatic move in a region familiar with currency volatility, offering a hedge against inflation while keeping liquidity intact.

The Fine Print Reality

Of course, there’s a catch—volatility. A sharp Bitcoin dip could trigger margin calls or automatic liquidation. Lemon’s betting users prefer that risk over converting crypto to hyper-inflated fiat. One cynical finance jab: It’s the same old credit game, just with a blockchain veneer—borrow today, hope your collateral doesn’t crash tomorrow.

Spending Your Hodl

This isn’t just another crypto card. It’s a collateralized loan product dressed for everyday use, blurring lines between investment and utility. For Argentina’s crypto-enthusiasts, it turns digital gold into a credit line—without asking permission from the very banks they’re trying to bypass.

How Does Lemon BTC-Backed Credit Card Work?

Per the exchange website, the user deposits 0.01 Bitcoin as collateral – currently over $900 in value – and gets a credit card in pesos with a pre-assigned limit of $1,000,000. This way, Bitcoin is only held as collateral, and is neither sold nor converted.

“Bitcoin is the best store of value created in the history of humanity and the fundamental piece for the new digital economy,” Cavazzoli added.

Further, in the next phase of the project, users will be able to configure their own backup and credit limit. Additionally, Lemon is developing a solution to allow dollar-denominated purchases to be paid directly in digital dollars such as USDT and USDC stablecoins, the announcement read.

User Benefits

Lemon highlighted that users of the credit card will have commission-free purchases of digital dollars, Bitcoin, ethereum and over 30 cryptos. Besides, exclusive benefits include early access to new features, newsletter with market info and portfolio summary.

In the initial three months, the card’s maintenance will be waived by Rootstock, the company noted, following which, 7,500 pesos per month ($5) will be waived for users who purchase over $150 worth of cryptocurrency per month.

“In Argentina, Bitcoin is the most held asset by Lemon users, above the crypto dollar and the peso,” it added. “With this card, Lemon seeks to transform those savings into an everyday tool.”