Crypto payments firm Ramp raises $70 million in ‘more than 50% up round’

Crypto payments firm Ramp has raised $70 million in Series B funding as its valuation increases to at least $450 million. 

The equity round, which closed in early October, was co-led by the investment arm of Abu Dhabi-based sovereign wealth fund Mubadala Capital and venture firm Korelya Capital, according to Ramp. Cogito Capital and previous lead backer Balderton Capital also took part. 

While founder Szymon Sypniewicz declined to share the valuation during an interview with The Block, he underlined that it was a “very healthy, more than 50% up round” compared to its last raise. The Block previously reported that the startup hit a $300 million valuation at the time of its $52.7 million Series A, led by Balderton. 

Ramp’s core product is its software development kit for on- and off-ramp payment features where users can buy cryptocurrencies via debit and credit cards, bank transfers and Apple Pay. One of its competitors, Wyre, was subject to a failed acquisition deal by fintech firm Bolt, which backed out of its $1.5 billion deal in September. 

Sypniewicz said Ramp wasn’t interested in such a deal, citing the opportunity still at stake for the firm to build a payment bridge to the crypto world. 

The payment point 

Sypniewicz said Europe and the U.S. account for 70% of its volumes, which the company claims to have increased by 240% during the 2022 bear market compared to last year. Ramp is eying adding further local payment methods in Asia and Latin America such as Brazil’s Pix and India’s United Payments Interface (UPI). 

“We are incredibly excited about Mexico and Brazil because these are very big markets. But also because there’s very strong crypto literacy there,” said Sypniewicz. “But using products that have on-ramps built into them is still quite painful in these countries because card payments don’t work very well there. ” 

Along with product building, the round will also finance its expansion to other markets. Drawing on Korelya Capital’s strong links with the region, the firm is looking to soon enter Japan and Korea by procuring licenses in the two countries to operate in a regulated fashion. 

“To be globally available and locally connected will require us to get licensed in these countries and partner up with local financial institutions to get access to local fiat roles,” said Sypniewicz. 

Ramp also competes with other crypto payment players such as MoonPay, which launched its own in-house NFT minting service in June. For such products, Sypniewicz said that they already have a feature available with a partner and will be looking to pursue further partnerships to build out other offerings. 

With the extra dollars, he claims that the company now has close to three years of runway to push towards becoming the defacto crypto payment onramp. 

Correction: Story updated to correct spelling of Mubadala Capital.

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