EtherFi unveils stocks, lending and 4% cashback in bid to replace your bank

EtherFi is significantly expanding its crypto neobank, aiming to bring more and more traditional banking features into one app. Users can hold crypto, trade, earn yield, spend and borrow. Now it is adding tokenised equities and precious metals, new payment methods and loans via Aave, while also introducing an expanded membership scheme with cashback of up to 4%.

You now get up to 15% cashback on your groceries with the code save10.

Trading shares and borrowing at around 4%

One of the biggest additions is trading in tokenised equities and metals. This lets users trade these products and crypto from the same app, without having to move their funds to a traditional trading platform first.

EtherFi is also integrating an Aave market on Optimism. Users can put their portfolio up as collateral and borrow at around 4% without selling their holdings first. The borrowed funds can then be spent, sent or reinvested.

The app supports more than 50 tokens across 15 networks. For fiat money, accounts supporting more than 30 currencies are being added. EtherFi is also expanding the options for depositing and withdrawing funds, including Apple Pay, Cash App and LemonPay.

EtherFi offers a standard 3% cashback on daily card payments. For the highest tier, this rises to 4%. Trading and borrowing can also earn cashback and Membership Points.

Four tiers with increasing benefits

The new Membership system consists of Core, Luxe, Pinnacle and VIP. Core is free and offers 3% cashback on the first $2.000 of monthly card spending. The package also includes travel benefits, insurance and a virtual card.

Luxe requires 5,000 Membership Points, $15.000 in Liquid assets, 30,000 staked ETHFI or an annual Fast Track payment of $199. Members get 3% cashback on up to $10.000 per month, a metal card and two premium lounge visits. This is interesting now that Crypto.com VISA card has scaled back lounge access.

Pinnacle raises that limit to $50.000 per month. This tier requires 25,000 points, $100.000 in Liquid assets, 150,000 staked ETHFI or $999 per year. Benefits include unlimited access to premium airport lounges, a dedicated account manager and a black metal card.

VIP is the highest category and requires 10 million Membership Points. Cashback rises to 4% on the first $50.000 per month. EtherFi attaches a gold card, luxury concierge, exclusive events and access to select investment opportunities.

ETHFI gets a direct role in revenues

The expansion is not just about users. EtherFi is also introducing programmatic buybacks of ETHFI. According to the project, every product category and revenue stream will contribute to these buybacks. In this way, EtherFi is trying to tie the growth of its financial products directly to its own token.

The platform is also working on account protection. Depending on the membership tier, protection is said to range from $10.000 up to $500.000. However, this broader insurance structure is not yet fully active.

With the new version, EtherFi is clearly positioning itself as an alternative to both a crypto exchange and a traditional banking app. The combination of payments, borrowing, investing and crypto makes the offering broad, but several features and benefits are still region-dependent or have yet to be rolled out. Terms may also change while EtherFi continues to update its documentation.