OpenNode, an industry-leading bitcoin payment processor and infrastructure provider, announces the close of an oversubscribed $20M Series A raise at a $220M valuation led by UK-based firm Kingsway and with additional investment from Twitter, Tim Draper, and Avon Ventures, a venture capital fund affiliated with the parent company of Fidelity Investments.
As cryptocurrency payments gain more and more popularity, OpenNode’s payment system provides a gateway as a payment processor for digital currencies, similar to the payment processors, gateways, and acquiring bank credit cards use. Cryptocurrency gateways enable you to accept digital payments and receive fiat currency immediately in exchange. OpenNode offers its multi-layered cryptocurrency payment processing platform comprised of mobile applications and websites.
Josh Held, new Head of Strategy at OpenNode, said, “OpenNode has believed in the promise of Bitcoin and Lightning-powered payments for a long time, and demand is now growing exponentially. For the last two years, the team has been heads down building solutions that support some of the largest brands and businesses in the world today. This Series A funding is the next step in helping the company to realize our mission of making bitcoin payments simple and accessible for everyone, everywhere”
Vocal Bitcoin supporter and renowned venture investor Tim Draper shares his enthusiasm for the OpenNode solution, saying “OpenNode allows the retailer to accept bitcoin without having to pay the banks or the credit card companies the 2-4%. OpenNode can do it with only a fraction of the energy cost required for an on-chain bitcoin transaction.”
OpenNode’s newest addition to the cap table was Twitter, where Ester Crawford, Group Product Manager, says, “Digital currencies encourage more people globally to participate in the economy, and with less friction. OpenNode is creating easier pathways for anyone, anywhere to access the digital economy through their seamless integration of bitcoin payments.”
Manuel Stotz, Founder of Kingsway Capital, the lead investor of OpenNode’s Series A, conveyed, “Bitcoin, complemented by the Lightning Network, is going to be the most important technology for financial inclusion. We are very excited by OpenNode’s deployment of the Lightning Network to make the promise of bitcoin as a global, censorship resistant and permissionless payment network a reality.”