Latitude raises $35 million to bridge stablecoins and local payments

Latitude raised $35 million in a Series A round led by Oak HC/FT. The funding allows the company to expand its infrastructure for converting stablecoins into local fiat currency. Previous investors include NEA, Coinbase, and Lightspeed Faction. The company previously raised an $8 million seed round.

Cyril Mathew, the CEO, co-founded Latitude with Brian Wrightson and Vivek Morzaria. The team includes former executives from Stripe, Uber, Coinbase, and Meta. The startup operates from offices in New York, San Francisco, and London. It currently employs 15 people across these locations.

Solving the local payout barrier

Stablecoins facilitate instant cross-border transfers but face adoption limits in emerging markets. Users in regions like Vietnam and Africa often require local currency for daily expenses. Many recipients avoid crypto wallets due to the complexity of managing seed phrases. Latitude addresses this by routing funds directly to bank accounts and mobile wallets.

Mathew identified this gap while leading international payments at Uber. He observed drivers in London using cash middlemen with 20% fees to send money to Morocco. At Stripe, his team launched stablecoin payouts in 100 countries. Adoption remained low because users preferred local spending methods over digital assets.

Expanding global regulatory footprint

Latitude plans to use the new capital to hire in compliance, engineering, and sales. The company holds licenses in 45 U.S. markets. It intends to pursue direct regulatory licenses in Southeast Asia, Latin America, and Africa. This expansion targets regions where stablecoin infrastructure is currently sparse.

Large enterprises prefer regulated partners for high-value money movements. Oak HC/FT partner Oivind Lorentzen noted that U.S. regulation provides necessary trust. Latitude serves payroll platforms, marketplaces, and financial firms. These clients use the platform to move funds across borders efficiently.

Building the payments bridge

The startup positions itself as a plug-and-play solution for neobanks. These banks can integrate Latitude to handle stablecoin entry and exit points. This avoids the cost of building infrastructure in 80 different countries. The service connects digital assets to familiar local payment rails.

According to GN markets/crypto (en-US), this development highlights a shift in stablecoin utility. The focus moves from speculative trading to practical settlement. Businesses gain a compliant path for cross-border payroll. Users receive funds in their preferred local payment methods.