Carbon Resumes Debit Card Issuance, Partners with Verve After Dropping Visa

Carbon, Nigeria’s digital bank known for its loans-led banking approach, has partnered with Verve, the Interswitch-owned card scheme, to relaunch its debit card services after a nine-month pause. The fintech announced the move in a February blog post, marking a shift from its previous partnership with Visa, which it ended due to high costs and cumbersome processes.

Operating without physical branches or an agent network, Carbon has limited channels for cash withdrawals and online shopping. Pausing card issuance further constrained customer access to funds, reinforcing the ongoing relevance of debit cards despite the rise of contactless payments and bank transfers.

“Offering cards is not about attracting new customers to Carbon; it’s more of an essential service we provide. It’s about providing convenience and retaining our customers,” said Lotanna Anuforo, Carbon’s content manager, in a November 2024 interview with TechCabal.

Nigerian fintechs once relied heavily on Visa and Mastercard to attract young, digital-savvy customers who shop online. However, rising costs—driven by dollar-based fees and declining international customer spending—have pushed many fintechs toward local alternatives like Verve.

Carbon first introduced debit cards in August 2021 after transitioning from a lending platform to a licensed microfinance bank. Its cards competed with those issued by traditional banks, which many fintech users still rely on as their primary accounts.

Beyond currency-related costs, fintechs without physical branches also face logistical expenses for card delivery, as well as high dispute resolution fees charged by international card schemes—sometimes exceeding $500 per case. These challenges have accelerated the shift toward Verve, which has issued over 70 million cards and dominates the Nigerian market. Moniepoint and OPay alone have issued over 17 million Verve cards, while most Nigerian banks also offer Verve as a standard option.

Carbon’s pivot to Verve underscores that, despite the evolving payment landscape and the push for contactless solutions, fintechs still rely on debit cards as a key service offering—for now—despite the associated costs and operational challenges.