Gusto

Gusto is a payroll, benefits, and HR software platform primarily serving US-based small and mid-sized businesses. Founded in 2011 and headquartered in San Francisco, Gusto processes payroll for over 300,000 businesses and is one of the most widely used payroll tools among US startups and SMBs. In January 2026, Gusto launched the ability for businesses to pay contractors in USDC or USDT stablecoins — a capability powered by Zerohash, a regulated cryptocurrency payment infrastructure provider.

What Gusto Does

Gusto handles payroll processing, benefits administration (health insurance, 401k), worker's compensation, compliance, and HR onboarding. Its primary audience is employers rather than individual employees. The platform automates tax filings, generates W-2s and 1099s, and integrates with accounting tools like QuickBooks and Xero.

Gusto raised $200 million at a $9.5 billion valuation in 2021 and has been reported as profitable on an operating basis. The company is privately held.

Stablecoin Contractor Payments via Zerohash

In January 2026, Gusto announced that US businesses could pay contractors in USDC or USDT directly through the Gusto payroll interface. The payout mechanism routes through Zerohash, a B2B cryptocurrency infrastructure company that provides compliant crypto settlement rails to fintechs and payroll providers.

Zerohash's own documentation explicitly lists Solana as a supported settlement network alongside Ethereum, Polygon, and other chains. When a Gusto user selects USDC or USDT as the contractor payout method, the underlying settlement path depends on Zerohash's routing — Solana is one of the available rails. Contractors receive funds to a crypto wallet address they provide; the specific chain depends on wallet compatibility and Zerohash routing at the time of settlement.

This architecture means Gusto's stablecoin payouts are not Solana-native but Solana-adjacent: the payment can settle on Solana via Zerohash's infrastructure without Gusto building direct Solana blockchain integrations itself.

Contractor Payment Flow

1. The employer sets up a contractor in Gusto and selects cryptocurrency as the payment method.
2. Gusto collects the contractor's wallet address.
3. On payment date, Gusto sends funds to Zerohash, which converts USD to USDC or USDT and settles on the contractor's specified network.
4. The contractor receives USDC or USDT at their wallet.

Gusto charges no additional fee for crypto contractor payments beyond its standard payroll subscription. Contractor KYC and sanctions screening are handled at the Zerohash layer.

Scope and Limitations

The stablecoin payout feature applies to contractor (1099) payments only, not to W-2 employee payroll, which must be paid in US dollars by law. The feature is available to US-based Gusto subscribers paying US or international contractors who can provide a valid crypto wallet address. Gusto does not offer employee crypto payroll, a crypto spending account, or any DeFi integrations.

Solana Ecosystem Fit

Gusto is not a crypto-native or Solana-native company. Its relevance to the Solana ecosystem is narrowly specific: Zerohash — the settlement layer behind Gusto's stablecoin contractor payouts — supports Solana as a settlement network, meaning a portion of Gusto's stablecoin payment volume may flow across Solana.

For the Solana ecosystem, this represents the integration of real-world payroll infrastructure with Solana's stablecoin settlement layer. A contractor paid in USDC through a major US payroll platform, with the settlement routing over Solana, is a meaningful adoption signal — payroll is one of the most routine and high-frequency payment flows in the economy. However, Gusto's direct integration is with Zerohash, not with Solana directly, and the chain-level settlement choice is abstracted from both the employer and the contractor in the default product flow.