COCA vs ether.fi

The structural difference between these cards affects every transaction.

COCA is a non-custodial Visa debit card issued by Wirex. You spend from your smart contract wallet balance. Every purchase sells crypto or stablecoins to fund the transaction - creating a taxable disposal event. Six tiers by COCA token holding (no staking, no lock-up): Starter (0, 1%), Standard (300, 3%), Standard+ (1K, 4%), Premium (3K, 5%), Premium+ (10K, 6%), Elite (30K, 8%). 0% FX on direct stablecoin pairs (EURC to EUR, USDC to USD), 1% on indirect pairs. $0 annual fee, $250/month free ATM. Personal IBAN with SEPA. 54 countries.

ether.fi is a self-custodial Visa credit card. You borrow against your staked ETH (eETH, weETH) as collateral - your holdings continue earning staking and restaking yield while you spend. No crypto is sold at the point of sale. Four tiers by Membership Points or ETHFI staking: Core (free, 3%), Luxe (10K pts/15K ETHFI, 3%), Pinnacle (50K pts/100K ETHFI, 3%), VIP (invite-only, 3%+). 1% FX, 0% annual fee, 2% ATM. Conference lounges at Luxe+. GLOBAL (US, UK, EEA).

Both are self-custodial. Both charge $0 annual fees. Both operate on Visa. The critical difference: COCA sells your assets; ether.fi borrows against them.

On domestic spending, COCA Standard matches ether.fi exactly at 3%. The comparison becomes interesting at higher COCA tiers: Standard+ (4%), Premium (5%), and above all outperform ether.fi's flat 3%. On $3,000/month, COCA Premium earns $720/year more than ether.fi.

On cross-currency spending, both cards now charge 1% FX on indirect pairs. Since February 2026, COCA's FX advantage has narrowed. Both ether.fi and COCA charge 1% on cross-currency transactions. COCA Standard (3%, 1% FX) nets 2% on international spending versus ether.fi's 2% net - matching exactly. The cashback gap on cross-currency spending now comes only from higher COCA tiers: Standard+ (3% net), Premium (4% net), Elite (7% net). COCA retains 0% FX on direct stablecoin pairs (EURC to EUR, USDC to USD).

At COCA Starter (1%), ether.fi wins. A user with no COCA tokens earns 1% on COCA versus 3% on ether.fi with no token requirement. The ether.fi Core tier has no staking or points threshold.

For holders of appreciated crypto, the tax treatment outweighs the cashback gap.

SpendNode tested both cards for tax impact. COCA (debit): Every purchase creates a taxable disposal. If you loaded $1,000 in ETH that is now worth $3,000 and spend $3,000, you realize $2,000 in capital gains. At 20% federal long-term CGT, that is $400 in tax on a single month's spending. Over a year of $3,000/month spending from appreciated holdings, capital gains tax could reach $3,600-7,200 depending on cost basis.

ether.fi (credit): Borrowing against your staked ETH creates no taxable event. Your ETH stays in your wallet as collateral, continuing to earn staking yield. You repay the credit line on your own schedule - potentially during a year when your tax rate is lower. Zero capital gains triggered at the point of sale.

The math for an ETH holder with $50,000 in holdings (50% unrealized gains):

• COCA Premium: $1,800/year cashback + $300 APY (6% on $5K stablecoins) - $3,600 CGT = -$1,500/year net (negative)
• ether.fi Core: $1,080/year cashback (domestic) + $2,000 staking yield (4% on $50K eETH) - $0 CGT = $3,080/year net

The $4,580/year swing in ether.fi's favor comes almost entirely from avoiding capital gains tax and earning yield on the same ETH used as collateral.

For stablecoin-heavy users with no capital gains exposure, the tax advantage disappears. Spending USDC creates no gains on either card. In this scenario, COCA's higher rates win on cashback: $1,800/year (COCA Premium) versus $1,080/year (ether.fi), plus $300/year in APY. Both cards now charge 1% FX on indirect pairs, so the FX comparison is a wash for cross-currency spending. COCA retains an edge only for users spending EURC in EUR or USDC in USD (0% FX).

Both cards generate passive income, but on different assets.

COCA: 6% APY on stablecoin balances via Morpho + Gauntlet DeFi lending. Earn on USDC/USDT sitting in your wallet. Tier cap applies (6% up to cap, 2% above). On $10,000 USDC, that is $600/year. Risk: DeFi smart contract risk on Morpho protocol.

ether.fi: ETH staking yield (approximately 3-4% base) plus EigenLayer restaking yield (additional 1-2%) on eETH/weETH. Your collateral continues earning while backing your credit line. On $50,000 in eETH, that is approximately $2,000-3,000/year. Risk: ETH price volatility affects collateral value (potential liquidation), plus smart contract risk on both staking and restaking layers.

The yield comparison depends entirely on portfolio composition. ETH-heavy users earn more with ether.fi. Stablecoin-heavy users earn more with COCA. Both yields are real and compound with the card's spending rewards.

COCA at all tiers: 50% off Netflix, Spotify, ChatGPT, Amazon Prime, Apple Music (approximately $240/year in savings at full price). Personal IBAN with SEPA banking. $250/month free ATM. Smart contract wallet with biometric recovery.

ether.fi at Luxe and above: Conference lounge access, 65% hotel discounts, priority support, metal cards. At Pinnacle: purchase protection up to $10K, extended warranty up to $10K, baggage coverage. These perks require 10,000+ monthly Membership Points (approximately $3,334 in monthly spending) or 15,000+ ETHFI staked.

COCA's perks are available from day one at every tier. ether.fi's perks unlock at Luxe and above, requiring either significant spending volume or ETHFI token commitment.

Picking COCA for higher cashback rates without accounting for capital gains tax on appreciated crypto holdings. COCA Premium (5%) earns $720/year more than ether.fi (3%) on $3,000/month domestic spending. But if that spending comes from appreciated ETH, capital gains tax at 20% on $36,000/year in disposals with 50% unrealized gains generates $3,600/year in tax liability. The tax cost ($3,600) exceeds the cashback benefit ($1,800) by $1,800 - making COCA a net-negative choice for this user profile. ether.fi's credit model eliminates the tax entirely. How to avoid it: Calculate your weighted-average cost basis on holdings you would spend. If unrealized gains exceed 30%, model the annual CGT cost against COCA's higher cashback. If CGT exceeds the cashback gap, ether.fi is the better financial choice even at a lower headline rate.

Using ether.fi for cross-currency spending when COCA at a higher tier would earn more. Both cards now charge 1% FX on indirect pairs, so the FX cost is equal. The difference is purely in cashback rate: ether.fi's 3% minus 1% FX = 2% net, while COCA Premium's 5% minus 1% FX = 4% net. A European traveler spending $2,000/month across currencies earns $480/year less on ether.fi than COCA Premium. How to avoid it: If you spend primarily in foreign currencies, your holdings are in stablecoins (no capital gains), and you can access COCA Standard+ or above, the higher cashback rate outweighs the matched FX fees.

For ETH holders with significant unrealized gains: ether.fi with 3% cashback and zero capital gains tax on spending. The credit model preserves your ETH position and continues earning staking yield. Tax savings alone can exceed $3,000/year.

For stablecoin-heavy users wanting maximum returns: COCA at Standard (3%) or above. 6% APY on idle stablecoins, 50% subscription savings. No capital gains to worry about on stablecoin spending. For EUR spending from EURC, COCA retains 0% FX.

For cross-currency European spenders: Both cards now charge 1% FX on indirect pairs. The comparison comes down to cashback rate: COCA wins at Standard+ (4%) and above, where the higher rate more than offsets the matched FX cost.

For DeFi power users who stake ETH: ether.fi lets you spend without unstaking. Your eETH/weETH continues earning while backing your credit line. COCA requires selling to spend.

Outlook: These cards serve adjacent but different user profiles and work well as a pair. COCA for stablecoin banking (IBAN, APY, higher cashback tiers) and ether.fi for ETH-backed spending (tax-free, yield-stacking). Since both now charge 1% FX on indirect pairs, the former FX gap has closed. If COCA adds a credit line against crypto holdings, it would directly challenge ether.fi's tax advantage. Both platforms are actively expanding features in 2026.