Payhound

Payhound is a Malta-based, regulated crypto payment processor that enables businesses in high-compliance industries to accept, convert, and send digital assets without building their own blockchain infrastructure or holding a virtual-asset licence themselves.

Founded in 2018 under the name Moneybite by a team with backgrounds in banking and payments, the company went live in 2019, earned its first Class 3 Virtual Financial Assets Licence in Malta in 2021, and rebranded to Payhound in 2023 to sharpen its positioning as a dedicated payment-focused provider. By 2022 the platform had processed more than 800 million euros in client transactional volume. In 2023 the company expanded its office space by 50 percent to accommodate growth.

Regulatory Standing

Payhound holds dual authorisations from the Malta Financial Services Authority: a Financial Institution licence under the Malta Financial Institutions Act and a Crypto-Asset Service Provider authorisation under the EU Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCAR). Operating under MiCAR positions Payhound within the EU unified regulatory framework for crypto services, a significant differentiator for clients in regulated verticals such as iGaming, forex, investment management, and payment services who need a counterparty that is itself compliant. The company is also ISO/IEC 27001 certified for information security management, a standard it has maintained for at least two consecutive years. For transaction monitoring and anti-money-laundering compliance, Payhound integrates Chainalysis.

Core Mechanism: Two Deposit Flows

The Payhound architecture centres on two settlement models that businesses choose based on their payment context.

The invoicing deposit flow is designed for one-time or discrete transactions. A merchant sets an amount in fiat currency (EUR, GBP, or USD), and Payhound generates a crypto invoice with a fixed exchange rate valid for a defined time window. The customer pays in whichever supported cryptocurrency they choose; the merchant receives the exact fiat amount regardless of price movements during that window. One-time-use wallet addresses are generated per invoice for traceability and security.

The channel deposit flow is designed for recurring payments. Payhound issues a dedicated crypto wallet address to each customer, functioning like a permanent account number, and monitors it via API. When a deposit arrives, the platform converts it to fiat at the current spot rate and credits the merchant account automatically, with callback notifications delivering full transaction and settlement details.

Both flows are accessible via API integration, letting development teams embed crypto payment acceptance into existing platforms without building wallet management or compliance tooling in-house.

Product Suite

Beyond inbound payment acceptance, Payhound offers two further products.

Cross-border payments allows businesses to send funds internationally in crypto, with recipients taking delivery in either crypto or fiat. Bulk payment processing is available via CSV upload or API, making it practical for global affiliate payouts, staff compensation across jurisdictions, and vendor settlements in multiple currencies. The platform handles wallet management and conversion automatically.

Large-volume trading facilitates high-value crypto transactions with direct trader support, targeting businesses that need to move significant amounts with managed execution and institutional-grade service.

Supported Assets and Solana Integration

Payhound supports Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana (SOL), and Tron (TRX) across all transaction flows. On the stablecoin side, USDC on Solana is available globally, while USDT on both Solana and Tron is available to clients outside the EU/EEA. USDT is not regulated under MiCAR and is therefore excluded for EU clients. USDT on Ethereum rounds out the stablecoin options for applicable markets.

Solana was added to all Payhound transaction flows alongside TRX as a deliberate expansion of the supported asset base. The rationale was the high throughput and very low transaction costs of the Solana network, making it well-suited for time-sensitive or high-frequency payment scenarios. Clients can settle in native SOL, in USDC on Solana for stable-value settlement, or route through the invoicing or channel deposit flow to convert to fiat.

Target Industries

Payhound focuses on businesses in sectors where traditional payment rails are unreliable, unavailable, or insufficient for the transaction volumes involved: iGaming operators and platforms, affiliate marketing networks, payment service providers seeking crypto rails without building them in-house, forex and investment firms, travel and luxury services, and real estate. The iGaming vertical appears to be the largest client concentration, reflected in conference presence at SBC Lisbon, ICE Barcelona, and SiGMA Europe.

Managing director Elton Dimech has been the primary public-facing spokesperson in industry media. Payhound does not require clients to hold their own virtual-asset licence to use its payment rails, a material advantage for iGaming operators and similar businesses adopting crypto payment capabilities without standalone regulatory approval.

Partnerships documented publicly include Gaming 1, LSports, and Hans Travel and Lifestyle for luxury travel crypto payments.

Recognition

Payhound was named Payment Innovation of the Year at the SBC Lisbon Awards 2025 and Best Crypto Payment Provider at the SiGMA Europe Awards 2026. It has also appeared in independent roundups of top stablecoin payment platforms.

Fit in the Solana Ecosystem

Payhound is not a Solana-native DeFi protocol; it is a regulated payment infrastructure provider that treats Solana as one of several supported settlement networks. Its relevance to the Solana ecosystem is primarily through payment volume and accessibility: businesses accepting or sending SOL and USDC on Solana use the Payhound compliance and conversion layer as a regulated on- and off-ramp, broadening the real-world utility of Solana-native assets in commercial contexts. For the iGaming, luxury, and financial services sectors that Payhound targets, having a MiCAR-licenced counterparty capable of handling Solana-denominated payments lowers the barrier to incorporating SOL-based transactions into mainstream business operations.