Peanut

Company Overview

Peanut is a fintech company focused on making stablecoin payments as simple as texting money. Co-founded by Hugo Montenegro, a Harvard graduate, the company is headquartered in London, United Kingdom. Peanut launched publicly in late 2024 and has rapidly expanded its presence in Latin America, particularly Argentina and Brazil.

In February 2025, Peanut raised $1.5 million in pre-seed funding to accelerate its mission of providing faster, borderless alternatives to traditional banking without requiring technical blockchain expertise from users.

The company operates two complementary products:

• Peanut App (peanut.me): Consumer-facing mobile app for everyday stablecoin payments
• Peanut Protocol (peanut.to): Developer infrastructure for cross-chain payment integration

Peanut's key innovation is "texting money" - enabling users to send stablecoins through familiar channels like WhatsApp, Telegram, email, and SMS using shareable links or QR codes, without the recipient needing a crypto wallet.

Key Company Information

Detail	Information
Founded	2024
Co-founder	Hugo Montenegro (Harvard)
Headquarters	London, United Kingdom
Funding	$1.5M Pre-seed (February 2025)
License	Open source (GNU GPLv3.0)

How Peanut Works

Peanut uses a unique "link-based payment" system built on the Peanut Protocol. The protocol consists of cryptographically secure smart contracts that hold deposited tokens and release them only when the recipient uses a secret contained in the shared link.

Payment Flow

1. Sender deposits tokens to the vault smart contract
2. Sender shares a URL or QR code via any messaging platform
3. Recipient claims funds using the secret within the URL
4. Recipient receives funds to their wallet OR directly to their bank account

Four Key Abstractions

Peanut introduces four innovations that simplify crypto payments:

Abstraction	Description
Address Abstraction	No need for wallet addresses or ENS names - send via links/QRs through WhatsApp, Telegram, email
Chain Abstraction	Payments work across different blockchains (e.g., send on Optimism, receive on Arbitrum)
Stablecoin Abstraction	Flexible stablecoin conversions (e.g., send USDT, recipient receives USDC)
Fiat/Crypto Abstraction	First self-custodial offramp - send USDC, recipient claims as USD to their bank account

Products & Services

Peanut App (Consumer)

The Peanut app (peanut.me) is designed for everyday users who want to send and receive digital dollars without blockchain complexity.

Key Features:

• Send/receive stablecoins via links and QR codes
• Cash out directly to bank accounts (USD, EUR)
• No email, password, or personal data required for signup
• Passkey authentication (biometric - Face ID, fingerprint)
• Integration with local payment systems (Mercado Pago in Argentina, PIX in Brazil)
• Cross-chain transfers across 20+ EVM networks
• Self-custodial (user controls their own funds)

Peanut Protocol (Developer)

The Peanut Protocol (peanut.to) provides infrastructure for developers to integrate stablecoin payments into their applications.

Developer Features:

• SDK and API for payment integration
• Cross-chain payment routing
• Stablecoin conversion
• Fiat offramp integration
• Support for any token type (native, ERC-20, NFTs)

Supported Networks & Tokens

Blockchain Networks (20+)

Peanut supports 20+ EVM-compatible chains including:

• Ethereum
• Optimism
• Arbitrum
• Base
• Polygon
• And many more

Supported Token Types

• Native tokens
• ERC-20 stablecoins (USDC, USDT, etc.)
• NFTs (ERC-721 and ERC-1155)

Stablecoin Conversions

Users can send one stablecoin and have the recipient receive another:

• USDT → USDC
• USDC → USDT
• And other supported pairs

Fees & Pricing

Beta Pricing (as of launch)

Service	Fee
Offramp (Cash out to bank)	$1 + 0.25%
First 5 transactions	Free (promotional)
Minimum cashout	$10

Note: Fees are beta pricing and subject to change

Network Fees

Users pay standard blockchain gas fees, which vary by network:

• Layer 2 networks (Optimism, Arbitrum, Base): Typically under $0.10
• Ethereum mainnet: Higher fees depending on network congestion

Geographic Availability

Current Markets

Region	Features
Argentina	QR payments at any merchant, Mercado Pago integration
Brazil	PIX integration for payments
European Union	Bank cash-out in EUR
United States	Bank cash-out in USD

Expansion Plans

Peanut is actively expanding, with particular focus on:

• Latin America (high stablecoin adoption due to currency instability)
• Markets with strong P2P payment culture
• Regions with limited traditional banking access

Account Requirements

• No email required
• No password required
• No personal data required for basic use
• Passkey authentication (biometric)
• Funds can be added from exchanges, banks, or fintech apps (e.g., Mercado Pago)

Use Cases

Cross-Border Remittances

Send money internationally without:

• High wire transfer fees (traditional: 6-7%)
• Multi-day settlement times
• Correspondent bank intermediaries

Freelancer Payments

• Receive payments from international clients instantly
• Cash out to local bank accounts
• Avoid complex crypto wallet management

Travel & QR Payments

• In Argentina: Pay at any QR-accepting merchant with USDC
• In Brazil: Pay via PIX with stablecoin conversion
• Convert digital dollars to local currency at point of sale

P2P Transfers

• Send money to friends/family via messaging apps
• Recipients don't need crypto wallets
• Instant settlement 24/7

Security

Self-Custodial Design

• Users maintain control of their own funds
• No centralized custody ("never a corralito" - no account freezing)
• Smart contract-based security

Protocol Security

• Cryptographically secure vault smart contracts
• Secret-protected fund release
• Open source code (auditable)
• Bug bounty program

User Security

• Passkey/biometric authentication
• No stored passwords
• No personal data collection for basic use

Target Users

Ideal For:

• Freelancers receiving international payments
• Expats sending money home
• Digital nomads in Latin America
• Anyone needing fast cross-border transfers
• Users wanting stablecoin payments without crypto complexity
• Developers building payment applications
• Businesses paying international contractors
• Travelers in Argentina/Brazil
• Users seeking self-custodial solutions

Not Suitable For:

• Users needing traditional banking services
• Those requiring regulated, insured accounts
• Users uncomfortable with stablecoin value risk
• Those needing extensive customer support
• Users in regions without offramp support
• Anyone requiring fiat-only solutions

Pros

• Send money via WhatsApp, Telegram, email, SMS
• Recipients don't need crypto wallets
• Self-custodial (full control of funds)
• No personal data required for basic use
• Passkey/biometric authentication (no passwords)
• Cross-chain transfers (20+ networks)
• Stablecoin conversion (send USDT, receive USDC)
• Direct bank cash-out (USD, EUR)
• Local payment integration (Mercado Pago, PIX)
• QR code payments at merchants (Argentina)
• Low fees compared to traditional remittances
• 24/7 operation (no banking hours)
• Instant settlement
• Open source protocol (transparent, auditable)
• First self-custodial offramp on Ethereum
• No account freezing risk
• Developer SDK/API available
• Support for NFTs (ERC-721, ERC-1155)
• $1.5M funding validates concept

Cons

• Very new service (launched late 2024)
• Limited geographic coverage currently
• Beta pricing may change
• Requires understanding of stablecoins
• No traditional customer support phone line
• Not a regulated financial institution
• Stablecoin value can fluctuate during market stress
• Gas fees vary by network
• Offramp requires bank account
• Limited merchant acceptance outside Latin America
• No physical card offering
• No interest/yield on holdings (in app)
• Requires smartphone with biometric capability
• Learning curve for non-crypto users
• SDK support is sunset (limited developer support)

How It Compares

Feature	Peanut	Wise	Venmo	Traditional Bank Wire
Cross-border fee	~0.25-0.5%	~0.5-2%	3% + FX	3-7%
Settlement time	Instant	1-3 days	Instant (US only)	3-5 days
No wallet needed for recipient	✓	✓	✓	✓
Self-custodial	✓	✗	✗	✗
24/7 operation	✓	Limited	Limited	✗
Works via messaging apps	✓	✗	✗	✗

Alternatives

Provider	Type	Key Difference
Wise	Money transfer	Traditional fiat-based, more established
PayPal/Venmo	P2P payments	Custodial, limited international
Strike	Bitcoin payments	Bitcoin-focused, not stablecoin
Stables	Stablecoin app	Hong Kong-based, includes card
Sphere	Stablecoin payments	Business-focused API
Paycrest	Stablecoin infrastructure	B2B protocol, not consumer app