How do I buy gift cards with USDC, and which network should I use?

Choose USD Coin at checkout and use the network your USDC already sits on: Genghis accepts nine, including Ethereum, Solana, Base and Algorand.

Then send the exact amount shown to the address on the payment screen, on that same network. USDC on each network is a separate token, so a transfer on the wrong one can be lost. Your code appears on screen as soon as the payment confirms on the network. We also email you a link to it.

By Claudio Cuccovillo, founder of Genghis. Last updated: September 25, 2026.

What is USDC?

USDC is a digital dollar: a stablecoin issued by regulated affiliates of Circle, fully reserved and redeemable one to one for US dollars, according to circle.com. Because it tracks the dollar, the amount you send keeps its value while the payment confirms. Read what a stablecoin is and how it holds its value.

Which networks does Genghis accept for USDC?

Nine, as of September 25, 2026, and none of them adds a network cost at checkout. The checkout always shows the current list.

Network	Name on many exchanges	Network cost added at checkout	Tag needed	"Open in wallet" on a phone	Connect your wallet on a computer
Ethereum	ERC20	None	No	Yes	Yes
BNB Smart Chain	BEP20, BSC	None	No	Yes	Yes
Solana	Same	None	No	No	No
Base	Same	None	No	Yes	Yes
Polygon	Same	None	No	Yes	Yes
Arbitrum One	Same	None	No	Yes	Yes
Optimism	Same	None	No	Yes	Yes
Avalanche C-Chain	AVAX C-Chain	None	No	Yes	Yes
Algorand	Same	None	No	No	No

The checkout labels BNB Smart Chain as Binance Smart Chain for USDC. Your wallet or exchange may still charge its own sending fee. When a network card is grayed out, your order is below that network's minimum: read why a network can be grayed out at checkout.

Which USDC network should I choose?

Whichever one already holds your USDC. Each network's USDC is its own token with its own contract, and a payment cannot jump from one network to another.

Ethereum or Polygon: on both, the checkout takes Circle's own USDC. On Polygon it is native USDC (contract 0x3c499c542cef5e3811e1192ce70d8cc03d5c3359), which replaced the older bridged USDC.e as the official form, according to Circle.
BNB Smart Chain: this USDC is a bridged token (contract 0x8AC76a51cc950d9822D68b83fE1Ad97B32Cd580d). BNB Smart Chain is not on Circle's list of chains where Circle issues USDC, so this token was created by a third party, not by Circle.
Solana or Algorand: the payment screen has no wallet button for USDC on these two, so you copy the address and the amount, or scan the QR code.
Tron: not an option. Circle stopped minting USDC on TRON on February 21, 2024, and the checkout lists no USDC on Tron.
Addresses starting with 0x: the seven networks other than Solana and Algorand share this format, so an address alone does not reveal its network. Set your wallet to the network you picked at checkout.

How do I pay with USDC, step by step?

Six steps. The wallet buttons in step 3 appear only on the networks marked Yes in the table.

Put your gift card in the cart, go to checkout and type the email address that should receive your code.
Choose USD Coin (USDC), then the network that holds your USDC.
On a computer, click "Pay with" and your wallet's name, or "Connect wallet" to scan a WalletConnect QR code with a wallet app, and approve the transfer. On a phone, tap "Open in wallet" instead.
With no wallet button, tap "Copy address", paste it into your wallet or exchange and enter the exact amount, or scan the QR code.
Make sure the full amount lands: if your exchange charges a withdrawal fee, choose "recipient gets the full amount" or add the fee on top. Send before "Quote expires in" runs out, or tap "Get a new quote".
Wait on the payment screen for the code, and look for our email with a link to it.

What trips people up when paying with USDC?

Mostly the network fee, which you pay in a different coin.

Fees in the network's own coin: network fees are paid in the chain's native coin, not in USDC, according to Circle's developer documentation. Keep a little ETH on Ethereum, SOL on Solana, POL on Polygon, ALGO on Algorand or BNB on BNB Smart Chain, on top of the USDC you send.
USDC.e is not native USDC: if your Polygon wallet shows USDC.e, that is the older bridged token, a different contract from the native USDC the checkout asks for. Check the token name before you send.

How long until I get my code?

Your code appears on screen as soon as the payment confirms on the network. We also email you a link to it. How long the confirmation takes depends on the coin. USDC has no speed of its own: a transfer settles at the speed of the network it travels on, according to Circle. On Ethereum, for example, a block comes every 12-second slot (ethereum.org). Most orders are delivered automatically; a small share is checked by hand before delivery.

What if something goes wrong?

Write to samantha@genghis.pro with your order number and the transaction hash (TxID), then read the page for your case.

USDC went out on a network other than the one you picked: crypto sent on the wrong network.
The transfer still shows as pending: a payment stuck on processing or pending.
Less USDC arrived than the amount due, usually after an exchange fee: a payment marked partially paid.
The countdown ran out before you sent: what to do when the quote expired.

Can I get a refund in USDC?

Yes, on Ethereum or BNB Smart Chain. Refunds within 30 days if a code fails at first redemption, arrives incomplete or never arrives, or our page showed the wrong region. Refunds are paid in USDT or USDC (ERC-20 or BEP-20) or as Genghis Points, 1 to 3 business days after approval. So a USDC refund comes as ERC-20 or BEP-20, even when you paid on Solana, Base or another network. Read how to ask for a refund.