The trend to move away from cash as a means of everyday spending is accelerating with the announcement of two new payment cards that enable users to save and spend forms of wealth other than money.

Instead of linking to a bank account denominated in sterling or another traditional currency, these new cards are tied to accounts where wealth is measured in bitcoins and physical gold.

London Block Exchange's Dragoncard is the bitcoin-backed card provisionally authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority and scheduled to be offered within weeks.

Glint, available from November 20, works in a similar way but the cardholder's account is stocked with physical gold.

The gold is purchased on behalf of the cardholder by Glint and stored in a Swiss vault. Like other, existing gold investment services, each account holder's entitlement to their share of physical gold is independently audited.

The account is managed via a smartphone app. The account holder can use the app to select payments either in gold or in sterling (and other currencies are being rolled out in future months).