Stacked, formerly known as Lightning Pay, may be the only Bitcoin exchange to survive a series of mergers and bankruptcies in New Zealand’s cryptocurrency industry. Further reinforcing our vision of making Bitcoin usable as money, we have just launched a self-custodial Lightning Wallet.
Found on StackedBitcoin.com, the company is taking a different path than the big domestic exchanges, and Simon, Stacked’s co-founder and CRO, says it’s fully committed to selling custodial Bitcoin and paper Bitcoin. Exchanges like Sharesies are built according to the Robinhood model, and there is no path to withdrawing cryptocurrencies into a self-custodial wallet. Meanwhile, EasyCrypto, a popular swap exchange similar to the Bull Bitcoin model that accepts users’ fiat currency and sends cryptocurrencies back to users’ wallets, was recently acquired by SwyFTX and shut down, concentrating its user base on its parent custodial exchange.
Stacked, a four-person company that has seen significant growth in the country in recent years, believes this is the wrong direction for the local Bitcoin industry, so it has launched a self-custodial Bitcoin and Lightning wallet to complement its swap trading services. Users send fiat currency to Stacked and receive Bitcoin in their chosen self-custodial wallet. You can also pay your utility bills and rent with Bitcoin through Stacked, which settles fiat recipients through New Zealand’s innovative Open Banking payments framework.
Featuring a sleek, modern design, the Stacked wallet uses Breez and Spark SDKs on the backend and provides users with a stable and easy-to-use Bitcoin experience with full Lightning Network integration. The app allows users to buy Bitcoin manually, buy Bitcoin on a schedule via Autostack, set DCA style and use the forgotten purchase feature. Users can also manage their contacts in the app, pay with Bitcoin on their end, and deliver fiat to the recipient. There is no capital gains tax in this country. Instead, Bitcoin profits would be taxed as income, potentially resulting in a much more favorable regulatory environment for hyperbitcoinization.
Stacked has been focused on enabling Bitcoin as money in the Bitcoin Basin, a growing circular economy in Queenstown, New Zealand that boasts a large number of merchants that accept Bitcoin. The company has created a dedicated community website and regularly hosts events in the area to encourage the local Bitcoin economy.
In financial year 2025, 227,000 New Zealanders were identified as unique crypto asset users participating in approximately 7 million transactions. Local cryptocurrency trading volume reached approximately NZ$7.8 billion. The local digital asset market is stacked with projects that are expected to generate more than US$200 million in revenue in 2026. Nearly 50% of New Zealanders are currently or will invest in Bitcoin and digital assets, according to a 2024 study by Protocol Theory.
The post Stacked (formerly Lightning Pay) launches self-custodial Lightning wallet as New Zealand’s last major non-custodial Bitcoin exchange appeared first on Bitcoin Magazine and was written by Juan Galt.
