Kado

Kado was a Web3 payments infrastructure company that built fiat on-ramp and off-ramp tooling for self-custody wallets, dApps, and blockchain protocols. It was acquired by Denmark-based Swapped.com in April 2025, and the kado.money domain now permanently redirects there. Kado no longer operates as an independent product.

What Kado Did

Founded in 2021 by Emery Andrew, Kado's core pitch was removing the centralized exchange from the crypto onboarding flow. Rather than requiring users to sign up for a CEX, deposit fiat, purchase crypto, and then withdraw to a wallet, Kado connected bank accounts and payment cards directly to self-custody wallets in a single step. The company positioned this as fiat infrastructure for the self-custody era.

Its primary product was Kado Ramp, an embeddable on-ramp and off-ramp widget that wallet providers, dApps, DAOs, and NFT marketplaces could integrate into their own UIs. A developer dropped in the Kado widget; their users got a checkout-style flow to buy or sell crypto without leaving the app. Kado handled the compliance, KYC, and payment processing layers underneath.

A companion product, Kado Pay, extended this to direct stablecoin transfers — letting US users sell USDC, USDT, ETH, SOL, and other assets back to a bank account via ACH.

How It Worked

The technical architecture centered on an embeddable JavaScript widget or iframe that could be integrated into any web or mobile application. Kado managed the fiat-side compliance layer: identity verification (KYC), payment processing partnerships, and regulatory licensing. On the crypto side, it interacted directly with the destination wallet address — funds arrived on-chain without passing through Kado's custody.

For more complex integrations, such as onboarding directly to a specific protocol, Kado composed with bridging and routing infrastructure. Its integration with dYdX Chain, for example, routed through Noble (for native USDC minting on Cosmos) and Squid Router (for cross-chain delivery), letting users fund a dYdX account from a bank card in a single step.

Supported Networks and Assets

Kado Ramp supported a multichain footprint. EVM-side coverage included Ethereum, Avalanche, and Arbitrum. On Solana it supported SOL and USDC natively. Kado was also a primary fiat entry point for the Cosmos IBC ecosystem, supporting Osmosis, Injective, Kujira, Terra, and Juno — often the only fiat gateway cited by Cosmos protocols.

Supported payment methods included ACH bank transfer (US), wire transfer, Visa and Mastercard debit and credit cards, SEPA Instant (Europe), PIX (Brazil), Apple Pay, and Google Pay. The platform operated in 150+ countries.

Solana Ecosystem Role

Within Solana, Kado served as embedded ramp infrastructure for wallets and DeFi frontends that wanted to offer direct fiat-to-SOL or fiat-to-USDC onboarding without sending users to a CEX. It was also integrated into Solana's official on-ramp page at solana.com/solanaramp. The embeddable model made it practical for smaller Solana dApps and wallets to offer a buy-crypto experience natively, which would otherwise require expensive direct payment processor relationships.

Acquisition and Wind-Down

Swapped.com, a Denmark-based crypto payment platform regulated by ASIC, FinTrac, and the Danish FSA, acquired Kado Software on April 21, 2025. Terms were not disclosed. Kado founder Emery Andrew remained with the combined entity to lead US operations and product expansion for Swapped.com. The acquisition was framed publicly as a way to expand Swapped.com's US market presence and leverage Kado's Web3 integration expertise.

Following the acquisition, kado.money was redirected to swapped.com. Kado's standalone brand, products, and documentation were retired. The @kado_money Twitter account went silent. Swapped.com continues to offer similar on-ramp services under its own brand.