Privacy | Lithic

About Privacy | Lithic

Originally founded as Privacy.com in 2014, Lithic offers a developer-centric platform for creating and managing virtual and physical payment cards. The company was established in New York City by Bo Jiang, Jason Kruse, and David Nichols. The founding trio began collaborating at the age of 13, developing various web projects before venturing into the fintech space. Their initial idea for a Bitcoin-backed debit card was met with resistance from banks, which pivoted their focus towards the privacy aspects of payments, leading to the creation of Privacy.com.

Privacy.com started as a consumer-focused service, providing users with virtual "burner" cards to protect their actual financial details during online transactions. After building their own card issuing infrastructure to support Privacy.com, the founders recognized a broader market need for these tools among other developers and businesses. This realization prompted a strategic shift, and in May 2021, the company rebranded its B2B offering to Lithic, while Privacy.com continues to operate as a consumer product powered by Lithic's own API.

Lithic's core business is providing an application programming interface (API) that enables other companies to build their own card programs. Its clients range from early-stage startups to larger enterprises looking to embed payment functionalities into their services, such as for expense reimbursements, procurement, and on-demand services. The platform is designed to be modular, allowing businesses to launch card programs quickly by managing complexities like network integrations and reconciliation. Revenue is generated through usage-based fees for services like card creation and from a share of the interchange fees on transactions. The company offers tiered pricing models, including a starter program for new ventures and an enterprise solution for high-volume clients.

The platform's key features include the ability to programmatically issue virtual and physical cards, set spending limits, and manage transactions in real-time. This empowers businesses to create new payment-enabled models and streamline their back-office operations. Lithic has secured significant funding to fuel its growth, including a $10.2 million Series A in 2020, a $43 million Series B in 2021 which coincided with the rebrand, and a $60 million Series C, bringing its total funding to over $115 million and its valuation to $800 million as of July 2021.