Sorted Closes $4.4M Seed Round Led by Tether and Gnosis to Expand Stablecoin Payments on Feature Phones

Sorted Wallet has closed a $4.4 million seed round led by Tether and Gnosis, a boost that underscores growing momentum behind stablecoin payment infrastructure for emerging markets. The raise broke down into $3.4 million in equity capital led by Tether and Gnosis, with participation from Movement, Angel Invest Group and several angel backers including the founders of RWA.io. Vox Solutions added $1 million in strategic support, bringing the total package to $4.4 million. Why it matters Sorted targets a persistent gap in crypto access: hundreds of millions of people who can’t afford smartphones or large data plans but still need low-cost payments and remittances. Founded in 2022, Sorted’s wallet is roughly 10MB, designed to run on stripped-down feature phones and low-end Android handsets common across parts of Africa and South Asia. That lightweight approach is already generating traction — the company says it has surpassed 500,000 downloads, with fastest growth in Nigeria, Kenya, Tanzania, Bangladesh and Madagascar, and additional adoption in Mexico and several Central American countries. Investor perspective Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino framed the investment as part of a broader push to move crypto use cases beyond trading toward real-world financial services and inclusion. He noted that expanding access requires infrastructure that works regardless of device, economic status or location — a point Tether previously backed with a $1.5 million investment in Sorted in September 2024 and reiterated by reinvesting in this round. Gnosis’ involvement reflects its growing focus on payment rails and self-custody tools for stablecoin flows. Daniele Pinna, an investment partner at Gnosis, called Sorted “an important access layer” for stablecoin-based payments in markets where traditional fintech has struggled to reach users consistently. Gnosis, maker of products including the Safe non-custodial wallet, has been leaning into payment and stablecoin infrastructure that complements Sorted’s lightweight mobile approach. What Sorted will do with the money Sorted plans to use the fresh capital to expand deeper into Sub‑Saharan African and South Asian markets, strengthen integrations with telecom providers, and roll out a new payment mechanism slated for launch in May. These moves aim to smooth on‑ramps and settlement for low-cost stablecoin transactions where telecom networks often outpace banking coverage. Broader context Tether has been active on this front beyond Sorted: in May 2026 it disclosed a strategic investment in remittance platform LemFi to integrate USDT into remittance rails serving African and Asian corridors — a play intended to cut transfer times and costs versus traditional cross‑border banking. Sorted’s seed round signals continued investor appetite for products that marry stablecoins with lightweight mobile access to bring crypto payments and remittances to underserved populations.