← Embedded Finance Index 2026

Lightspark

Also a provider — view Lightspark’s profile →

“Can Bitcoin become the universal settlement layer for a global BaaS 2.0 stack that lets any platform offer branded dollar accounts, cards, and real-time cross-border payouts without a banking license?”

Founded2022
HQWest Hollywood, CA, United States
FoundersDavid Marcus
Total raised$175M+
Latest roundSeries A
IndustryInfrastructure / Payments
The story

Founded in 2022 by David Marcus (ex-PayPal, ex-Meta Diem) as a Bitcoin Lightning Network infrastructure company, Lightspark quickly evolved beyond Lightning to build a broader global payments infrastructure layer. By 2025 it had repositioned as an enterprise-grade open payments infrastructure provider with the Grid API, bridging fiat, stablecoins, and Bitcoin. The 2026 launch of Grid Global Accounts marks a full pivot into BaaS 2.0 — enabling any platform to offer branded dollar accounts, Visa cards, and real-time cross-border payouts without a banking license, using Bitcoin as the settlement layer.

Last 12 months
2026-04
2026-04
Product timeline
2022
David Marcus (ex-PayPal president, ex-Meta crypto chief) co-founded Lightspark to explore and extend Bitcoin Lightning Network capabilities; raised initial seed round co-led by a16z Crypto and Paradigm.· pivot
2023
Launched Spark, a Bitcoin Layer 2 network for instant, near-zero-cost bitcoin and stablecoin movement.· banking
2025
Launched Grid API — a unified API/SDK for sending, receiving, and settling value globally across fiat, stablecoins, and Bitcoin rails.· banking
2026
Announced Grid Global Accounts at Bitcoin 2026 conference — branded dollar accounts, stablecoin issuance, Visa debit cards, and cross-border off-ramps across 65+ countries via a single API integration.· card
Regulated entities
2
regulatory licences held by Lightspark
Licence types, jurisdictions and registered entities are in the Embedded Finance Index report.
The stack
6 layers disclosed in Lightspark’s embedded-finance stack
Payments / PSP
Lightspark Grid (self-operated)
Banking / BaaS
in the full report
Card issuing
in the full report
Card network
in the full report
FX & payouts
in the full report
Crypto
in the full report
Accounting gap: none
6 more providers across 5 layers, with confidence-scored evidence and source URLs, are in the Embedded Finance Index report.