Paris-based fintech Kulipa said on Thursday it has raised $6.2 million in a seed funding round co-led by Flourish Ventures and crypto-focused investment firm 1kx, as it looks to scale infrastructure that enables real-world spending of stablecoins.
White Star Capital and Fabric Ventures also participated in the round, bringing Kulipa’s total funding to $9.2 million.
Kulipa provides card issuing infrastructure that allows fintech platforms, digital banks and crypto wallets to offer payment cards funded directly from stablecoin balances. The company aims to bridge the gap between blockchain-based settlement and traditional payment networks such as Visa and Mastercard.
Stablecoins process more than $300 billion in daily transactions, but their use in everyday payments remains limited due to fragmented infrastructure and regulatory hurdles. Kulipa’s platform is designed to address this by enabling compliant, capital-efficient card issuance without relying heavily on prefunded accounts.
“Card issuance is the bridge between onchain balances and real-world payments,” Kulipa founder and CEO Axel Cateland said, adding that the company is focused on helping regulated fintechs scale globally.
The startup operates a “local-first” regulatory model, with issuing coverage across the European Union, Argentina and Nigeria, and plans to expand into the United States through BIN sponsorship.
Since launching in February 2025, Kulipa said it has issued more than 120,000 cards and signed 20 customers, including African payments firm Flutterwave, crypto wallet Solflare and fintech platforms nSave and Ready. The company also reported 70% month-on-month growth in transaction volumes.
Flutterwave CEO Olugbenga Agboola said the partnership allows the company to extend stablecoin functionality into globally accepted payments in a compliant way.
Investors say the company is positioning itself as key infrastructure for broader adoption of digital assets.
“Stablecoins are reshaping how money moves globally, but for mainstream adoption, people need to spend them as easily as fiat,” said 1kx founding partner Christopher Heymann.
Kulipa plans to use the funding to expand its regulated issuing capabilities across Europe, Latin America and Africa, as demand grows for stablecoin-based financial products.