Infographics
Crypto cards, drawn out
Free to share with a link back. Figures update from the card data on this site.
Short answer
Five diagrams explain crypto cards at a glance: what happens between a tap and a reward, why a staked balance can dwarf a year of rewards, who holds the crypto on each verified card, the moments that create tax records, and coverage by province. Each draws on the same dated data as the calculators.
Figures as of November 3, 2026.
1. From tap to reward
2. A year of rewards vs a staked balance
$20 a month of rewards ($240 a year) next to a $4,000 stake in the same token, after a 25% fall.
3. Who holds what
| Card | Custody | How a purchase is paid |
|---|---|---|
| Shakepay Card | Custodial | Spends your CAD balance only; to spend crypto you first sell it for CAD |
| Crypto.com Visa | Custodial | Spends a CAD card balance; crypto must be sold to CAD and loaded first (“Cards can only be loaded with Canadian dollars”) |
| MetaMask Card | Self-custody | Converts supported tokens (mUSD, wETH, USDC, USDT and others on Linea, Base, Monad and Solana) to local currency at checkout |
4. The tax moments on a crypto card
Top up with CAD
Not a crypto disposition.
Sell crypto to fund the card
Disposition: gain or loss.
Card sells crypto at the till
Disposition on every purchase.
Reward credited
CRA silent on card cashback; staking rewards are income when credited.
Sell the reward later
Disposition against its ACB.
5. Coverage by province
| Rewards credited | $20 a month for 12 monthsCAD value on the day each reward lands |
|---|---|
| Coin price path | -10% at month 6, -25% at month 12 |
| Tokens staked for the tier | $4,000 |
| Rewards as advertised | $240.00 |
| Same rewards at the end price | $206.74loss of $33.26 |
| Stake gain or loss | −$1,000.00 |
| What the year was worth | −$793.26Compare: the same spend with CAD cashback is worth exactly the advertised amount. |
Open this example in the calculator →Computed 2026-11-03.