Stablecoin payments infrastructure startup Diameter Pay raises $10 million

Diameter Pay, a stablecoin payments infrastructure startup focused on expanding global access to the U.S. dollar, has raised $10 million in a Series A funding round co-led by CMT Digital and Lightspeed Faction.This is Diameter Pay's first funding round, and the startup was bootstrapped before the Series A, founder and CEO David Lighton told The Block. The round was structured as equity and closed in a single tranche, Lighton said, noting that the fundraising process began in April and closed in July. Lighton declined to comment on post-money valuation.Other investors in the round included SixThirty Ventures, Stellar Development Foundation, Tech Council Ventures, Onigiri Capital and BitRock Capital.Founded in 2023, Diameter Pay provides payment infrastructure for banks, fintechs, and digital asset exchanges. Its platform gives clients access to U.S. dollar virtual accounts, domestic and international payments, stablecoin on- and off-ramps, and compliance controls through U.S. banking partners.Lighton said these virtual accounts let foreign fintechs offer U.S. dollar accounts to their own customers, while Diameter Pay handles the compliance and payment controls behind the scenes. The accounts can also be connected to stablecoin infrastructure, he added.Sponsor banking partners include Portage Bank and SSB Bank, with a third sponsor bank that is a public company but has not been disclosed, Lighton said. More banks are being onboarded, he added."When a sponsor bank partners with us, they are allowing us to use their access to the USD clearing infrastructure, and in exchange, they get fee revenue and low-cost deposits," Lighton said.Diameter Pay started payment processing in 2024 for foreign banks. Lighton said the idea was inspired by his time working for the World Bank in Haiti after the earthquake, where he focused on remittances and the development impact of cross-border payments.Expanding access to the US dollarDiameter Pay said the U.S. dollar remains the foundation of global trade and payments, but accessing it has become increasingly difficult in many parts of the world. Correspondent banks have pulled back from entire markets amid rising sanctions and anti-money laundering risk, the startup said, adding that the result is a global financial system in which legitimate businesses can be excluded alongside the bad actors those safeguards are designed to stop.Diameter Pay said it has processed more than $10 billion in payment volume this year-to-date. Its clients include "some of the largest privately owned fintech companies in the world and various banks across multiple financial hubs including Switzerland, Singapore, and others," Lighton said, without naming specific clients.Diameter Pay is registered as a money services business and as a money transmitter in New Jersey, Lighton said. The startup makes money by charging payment fees and selling directly to financial institutions that bring their customers onto the platform, he added. Diameter Pay has more than 10,000 end users live, according to Lighton.Diameter Pay said it will use the funding to expand its banking and payment capabilities, deepen its stablecoin and foreign exchange infrastructure, and keep investing in technology and compliance tools for cross-border dollar movement.As part of the Series A round, CMT Digital took a board seat, while Lightspeed Faction and SixThirty Ventures took observer seats, Lighton said. He added that Robert Pozen, former president of Fidelity Investments, is a senior advisor to the board.Diameter Pay has a team of 20 people, with its core team in the U.S. and additional teams in Argentina, Poland, and Nigeria. The startup is hiring a chief technology officer and chief commercial officer.The Funding newsletter: Stay on top of the latest crypto VC funding and M&A deals, news, and trends with my free bi-monthly newsletter, The Funding. Sign up here!Disclaimer: The Block is an independent media outlet that delivers news, research, and data. As of November 2023, Foresight Ventures is a majority investor of The Block. Foresight Ventures invests in other companies in the crypto space. Crypto exchange Bitget is an anchor LP for Foresight Ventures. The Block continues to operate independently to deliver objective, impactful, and timely information about the crypto industry. Here are our current financial disclosures.© 2026 The Block. All Rights Reserved. This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.