Tether, the largest company in the digital asset ecosystem, has led a $7 million Series A financing round in Pact Labs, alongside participation from Blockchange Ventures and Lasagna. The investment is aimed at accelerating Pact Labs’ role as a core infrastructure provider for USA₮ across payroll, earned wage access, credit services, and everyday payments.
The partnership focuses on expanding the practical use of USA₮ by integrating the digital dollar, designed to be compliant with U.S. regulations, directly into financial systems used by American businesses and workers. Pact Labs provides infrastructure that allows enterprise platforms to embed digital wallets, facilitate real-time wage transfers, and offer financial services without depending on traditional payment rails.
The U.S. payroll market processes more than $11 trillion annually, yet much of its underlying infrastructure continues to rely on systems developed decades ago. As a result, workers often experience delays in accessing wages they have already earned. These delays can contribute to overdraft fees, short-term borrowing requirements, and other financial challenges.
Through Pact Labs’ technology, employers and financial service platforms can support payroll and earned wage access using USA₮, enabling workers to receive earnings more quickly while allowing businesses to operate beyond traditional banking hours. The initiative is designed to incorporate digital dollars into familiar financial experiences rather than requiring users to navigate separate or highly technical platforms.
Commenting on the investment, Paolo Ardoino, CEO of Tether, said the move reflects growing demand for dollar-denominated settlement solutions. He noted that workers in emerging markets have used USD₮ to address payroll-related challenges where traditional systems proved insufficient and stated that similar capabilities are now being introduced to the U.S. market through USA₮.
Bo Hines, CEO of Tether USA₮, emphasized the practical application of digital dollars in payroll. He stated that Pact Labs provides the infrastructure needed to place regulation-compliant digital dollars directly into the hands of American workers more efficiently and with fewer intermediaries.
The investment aligns with Tether’s broader strategy of supporting infrastructure that enables digital dollars to serve practical, high-frequency financial use cases. Given the scale and importance of payroll in the United States, the company views the sector as a significant opportunity for stablecoin technology to improve how individuals receive, hold, and use money.
As digital payment technologies continue to evolve, the collaboration between Tether and Pact Labs highlights a growing focus on modernizing payroll and payment systems through blockchain-enabled financial infrastructure.