Robinhood Wallet and Fomo are circumventing card-network crypto restrictions by coding memecoin purchases as "digital media" transactions.
Regulation & Gov ·
Robinhood Wallet and Fomo are enabling memecoin purchases using credit cards in a way that appears to circumvent restrictions imposed by card networks. Test transactions for memecoins were classified as "digital media" purchases rather than cryptocurrency transactions, allowing users to earn credit card rewards on trades that card networks typically restrict or prohibit.
The classification shift exploits merchant category coding that treats the transactions differently at the payment-processing level. By routing memecoin buys through a merchant category associated with digital goods rather than crypto asset sales, the platforms appear to circumvent explicit card-network policies that discourage or block direct cryptocurrency purchases on credit accounts. This approach allows credit card rewards to accrue on activity that would normally be flagged or declined.
It remains unclear whether card networks and issuers will respond with enforcement actions, tighten transaction monitoring, or update their merchant code classifications to close this avenue. The broader implications for regulatory scrutiny of crypto payment workarounds are also not yet established.