Karta has closed a $140 million Series A funding round co-led by Galaxy Ventures, the company announced this week. The startup is building a platform to let people who don't live in the United States get their hands on US credit cards — a market that's long been fragmented and expensive for non-residents. The size of the round and the lead investor signal that investors see real demand for more inclusive cross-border financial tools.
$140M round, one lead
The Series A was co-led by Galaxy Ventures, the venture arm of Galaxy Digital. Karta didn't disclose a valuation or the full list of participants, but the $140 million figure puts it among the larger fintech raises this year. The announcement was first reported by Crypto Briefing.
What Karta actually does
The pitch is straightforward: Karta aims to issue US credit cards to global non-residents — people who live outside the US but want access to the American credit system, whether for travel, online purchases, or building a US credit history. Today, that process is a maze of paperwork, high fees, and rejection letters from banks that don't want to underwrite someone without a local address or Social Security number. Karta says it can handle the compliance, underwriting, and card issuance, making the whole thing digital and fast.
Why now
The timing lines up with a broader push in fintech and crypto to serve people who fall through the cracks of traditional banking. Stablecoins, cross-border payments, and digital identity tools have made it easier to verify and serve customers globally. Karta is tackling a specific pain point: the US credit card network is one of the most powerful in the world, but it's basically locked for non-residents. If Karta can unlock it cheaply and compliantly, the addressable market is huge — millions of expats, digital nomads, students, and professionals outside the US who want a Visa or Mastercard tied to American rails.
The round is also a bet on the intersection of crypto and traditional finance. Galaxy Ventures is a crypto-native firm, and Karta could use blockchain for settlement or identity verification down the line, though the company hasn't detailed those plans yet.
Karta said it will use the capital to build out its product, hire teams, and work through the regulatory hoops needed to issue cards in multiple jurisdictions. The company hasn't given a launch date, but with $140 million in the bank, the pressure is on to ship. The big open question: can they actually underwrite and price risk for non-residents without piling on fees or fraud? That's the hard part, and the money says they can try.
