KAST vs Avici

KAST costs less across the spending levels we test. The full fee, reward, availability and safety comparison is below.

Verdict

  • KAST leaves more money in your pocket at all three spending levels we test: $24.60 a year more at $500 a month, $267.60 a year more at $2,000 a month, $213.60 a year more at $5,000 a month.
  • KAST is a custodial card, so the provider holds your balance. Avici is self-custody.
  • On our safety check, KAST scores 44/100 (Fair) and Avici scores 67/100 (Good).
  • Overall, Avici rates 53/100 against 33/100 for KAST, helped by its reach: it is offered in 49 countries and territories against an unpublished number for KAST.

Yearly cost at $2,000 a month (20% foreign spend, one $200 ATM withdrawal a month). A minus sign means cashback outweighs fees.

  • KAST · Standard-$192
  • Avici · Platinum$75.60
Crypto card comparison
FeatureKASTAvici
Countries offeredList not published49 countries
Card networkVisaVisa
CustodyCustodialSelf-custody
KYCFullFull
Top-up assetsUSDT, USDCUSDC
Top-up or conversion fee0%0%
FX markup1.75%1% (better)
ATM fee2% + $30.65% + $1
Annual fee (base tier)FreeFree
Card issuanceVirtual Free · Physical $40Virtual $15 · Physical $50
Cashback1.5% to 3% (better)None
Apple Pay / Google PayApple Pay, Google PayApple Pay, Google Pay
Safety score44/10067/100 (better)
Overall rating33/10053/100 (better)
Get the cardGet KASTGet Avici

Yearly cost at three spending levels

Monthly spendKASTAvici
$500$15
Standard
$39.60
Platinum
$2,000-$192
Standard
$75.60
Platinum
$5,000-$66
Standard
$147.60
Platinum

Yearly cost: conversion, FX, ATM and fixed fees minus cashback. A minus sign means cashback outweighs fees. US dollars, 20% foreign spending, one $200 ATM withdrawal a month. The card cost calculator runs the same comparison with your own habits.

Where the money goes at $2,000 a month

LineKAST
Standard
Avici
Platinum
Top-up and conversion fees$0$0
Spending fees$0$0
Foreign exchange markup$84.00$48
ATM fees$84$27.60
Annual, monthly and subscription fees$0$0
Cashback-$360-$0
Yearly cost-$192$75.60

Fees

KAST charges 0% to convert or top up and 1.75% on spending in a foreign currency. Avici charges 0% and 1%.

ATM withdrawals: KAST 2% + $3; Avici 0.65% + $1.

A virtual card costs nothing with KAST and $15 with Avici. A physical card costs $40 and $50. Neither card has an annual fee on its base tier.

Cashback and rewards

KAST cashback: 1.5% to 3%. Avici cashback: None.

KAST tiers: Standard: 1.5% on the first $2,000 a month; Premium ($1,000 a year): 2% on the first $10,000 a month; Private ($10,000 a year): 3% on the first $40,000 a month.

Avici tiers: Platinum: 0%; Signature ($20 a year after year one): 0%.

KAST: Premium and Private also earn KAST Points (1% and 2%), which this model does not value.

Avici: No card cashback is published. Signature adds Visa Signature benefits (lounge access via Visa Airport Companion, rental car cover, purchase protection, travel insurance) but no free lounge visits yet. New users get a $5 welcome bonus ($8 through a referral). Referrers earn 2% of a friend's card spend for the friend's first 90 days.

Availability and KYC

KAST does not publish a country list. KAST shows supported countries only in the app during sign-up.

Avici is offered in 49 countries, including Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Malaysia, Mexico, Philippines, Singapore, South Africa, Thailand and United Arab Emirates. Avici lists these regions for the card. In the US it is open in 31 states only (AL, AK, AR, CA, CO, CT, FL, HI, IL, IN, IA, KS, KY, ME, MA, MI, MN, MT, NE, NH, NJ, NY, NC, OK, PA, SC, TX, UT, VA, WV, WY). The list has "Dominica Republica" and "Dominicana", read here as the Dominican Republic. Residents of Belarus, mainland China, Cuba, India, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Myanmar, Nepal, Nicaragua, North Korea, Russia, Sri Lanka, Syria, Turkey, Ukraine, Venezuela and Vietnam are barred, and Avici says unlisted places may also be restricted. The card cannot be used in Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Russia, Syria, Ukraine or Venezuela. The card terms page also says "Non-US citizens only", which conflicts with the US state list.

KAST needs full KYC and Avici needs full KYC.

The card finder checks both cards against your country, KYC level and must-have features.

Limits, wallets and card types

KAST publishes ATM withdrawals of up to $750 a day.

Avici does not publish fixed spending or ATM limits.

KAST works with Apple Pay and Google Pay, and Avici works with Apple Pay and Google Pay. KAST and Avici issue a virtual card you can use straight away.

Custody and safety

KAST scores 44/100. Licensing: we could not confirm a licence for the card issuer on its own website. No incidents or enforcement actions found in the last 36 months. KAST's terms say accounts, cards and custody are provided by licensed partners and the card is issued "by the Issuer under license from Visa", without naming the issuer.

Avici scores 67/100. Licensing: holds a licence or registration outside the tier-one list (Issuer Third National (Nimbus LLC dba Third National) is a licensed money transmitter in Puerto Rico, NMLS #2612780, licence TM-0207). The card is issued through Third National. 2026-08-28: An attacker exploited an outdated Rain card-collateral contract and drained about $500,859 from the card balances of 1,685 Avici users (about $1.1 million across several programs). Self-custodial wallets were not affected. Avici and Rain committed to refund every user in full and Rain upgraded the affected deployments. Avici filed an FBI IC3 report. Avici Inc is a Delaware company with a named San Francisco address and published terms, privacy policy and docs, and the app has been on the iOS App Store since 2023 (app id 6465962039). The card holds no user funds in Avici's own accounts, but card balances sit in a Rain contract that was exploited in August 2026. Card spend is settled with Visa roughly weekly by liquidating the spent USDC.

Full reports: KAST safety check and Avici safety check.

About each card

KAST Card is a custodial Visa card from KAST. It tops up with USDT and USDC.

Avici Card is a self-custody Visa card from Avici Inc. It tops up with USDC.

Which card fits you

KAST fits if

  • You want a higher cashback ceiling (up to 3%).

Avici fits if

  • You want to keep crypto in your own wallet until each payment.
  • You spend in foreign currencies often, since its FX markup is lower.
  • You weigh licensing and fund segregation heavily, since it scores higher on our safety check.

Read more: KAST fees and details · Avici fees and details

KAST vs Avici: questions

Which is cheaper, KAST or Avici?
At $2,000 a month with 20% foreign spending and one $200 ATM withdrawal, KAST leaves $267.60 more per year. The result can change with your spending, so the comparison above lets you enter your own amount.
Can I use KAST and Avici in the same country?
One of the two issuers does not publish a country list, so we cannot confirm overlap. Country list not published for KAST; 49 countries for Avici.
Is KAST or Avici safer?
Avici scores higher on our safety check (67/100 against 44/100). The score looks at licensing, custody, fund segregation, proof of reserves and incident history.
Which card has better cashback, KAST or Avici?
KAST pays 1.5% to 3% and Avici pays none. Caps, tier rules and fees decide what you keep, which is why the yearly figures above include both.

Sources

  1. KAST Card: fees · checked September 24, 2026
  2. KAST Card: availability · checked September 24, 2026
  3. KAST Card: cashback · checked September 24, 2026
  4. KAST Card: safety · checked September 24, 2026
  5. Avici Card: fees · checked September 29, 2026
  6. Avici Card: availability · checked September 29, 2026
  7. Avici Card: cashback · checked September 29, 2026
  8. Avici Card: safety · checked September 29, 2026