A new partnership between KAST and Pudgy Penguins is bringing stablecoin payments into everyday commerce with the launch of a co-branded crypto card designed for digital asset spending worldwide.
KAST, a financial platform operating on stablecoin payment infrastructure, has partnered with Pudgy Penguins, a Web3-native brand and digital collectibles project, to introduce a co-branded stablecoin payment card called the Pengu Card.
Starting as a popular NFT collection composed of 8,888 unique penguin NFTs on the Ethereum blockchain, Pudgy Penguins project has since grown into a broader Web3 brand with digital collectibles, community tokens, physical merchandise, gaming, and IP-driven initiatives. By cooperating with Kast, the initiative aims to turn digital assets into usable spending power in everyday life, not just a collector’s market.
“Pengu Card is our first step into real-world finance. Partnering with KAST lets us offer our community something they can actually use, every day.” Luca Netz, CEO & Owner at Pudgy Penguins
The new co-branded card will be integrated into KAST’s existing crypto-to-fiat payment ecosystem and offered in three tiers: Standard, Premium, and Luxe, following the same pricing structure and rewards framework as the company’s other card products.
“Pudgy Penguins is one of the strongest consumer-native brands in crypto. With Pengu Card, we’re bringing that brand into everyday spending. Globally, at scale.” Raagulan Pathy, Founder & CEO at KAST
At launch, the Pengu Card will be available as a virtual card, allowing users to make online and mobile payments. Physical cards are planned for release later this year. According to the companies, additional features and product updates are expected as the collaboration develops.
The partnership reflects broader efforts by fintech and Web3 companies to connect digital asset holdings with everyday payment tools. By linking a stablecoin-based spending card with a recognizable Web3 brand, the initiative aims to expand practical use cases for crypto-denominated balances while offering branded financial products to community members.
Crypto and stablecoin payment cards collectively are generating roughly $18 billion in annualized transaction value. These spending stats went up sharply from around $100 million/month in early 2023 to $1.5 billion/month by late 2025, suggesting massive growth in usage.
Being the paragons of stability in crypto market, stablecoins make up most of crypto card volume at present, accounting for about 78 % of the total card transaction value (led by USDT and USDC). Though on-chain card transactions are still only a small share of global payments, they are growing faster than traditional P2P stablecoin transfers. The overall crypto card transaction segment is quickly nearing the size of on-chain peer transfers (~$19 billion).
