PANews reported on January 22 that Bitcoin payment startup ZBD announced the completion of a $40 million Series C funding round, led by Blockstream Capital (which invested $36 million). Other investors and the company's valuation were not disclosed.

ZBD, headquartered in New Jersey, primarily provides payment software solutions for video games, supporting various transaction processing methods including Bitcoin. The company does not deal with NFTs or crypto-based gameplay; instead, it focuses on using blockchain as a payment channel to help game developers and players establish direct financial relationships, enabling user-to-user transfers and in-game reward distribution. The company currently has 70 employees and has partnered with 55 games by 2025. This round of funding will be used to expand its payment product suite over the next year.