Tether Leads $8 Million Investment in Lightning-Powered Payments Startup Speed

Tether, the issuer of USDT, announced it led an $8 million strategic funding round in Speed1, Inc. ("Speed"), a payments infrastructure company that uses the Bitcoin Lightning Network and stablecoins to create instant, global settlement rails. The investment round also included ego death capital, signaling a push to expand Bitcoin-aligned financial infrastructure and increase USDT's utility. Speed currently processes over $1.5 billion in annual payment volume for about 1.2 million users through its Speed Wallet and Speed Merchant products, enabling near-instant settlement in both bitcoin and USDT with global routing capabilities. Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino stated that Speed demonstrates what Lightning can achieve when paired with a stable digital dollar like USDT, suggesting Bitcoin-rooted networks are ready for mainstream commerce. The funding will support Speed's infrastructure expansion and further integrations.

(Source：Bitcoin Magazine)