Available now in a number of key global
remittance markets, including Canada, Kenya, Philippines, and the U.S., with additional
countries launching throughout June
DALLAS and SAN
FRANCISCO, June 10, 2022 /PRNewswire/
-- MoneyGram, a global leader in the evolution of digital P2P
payments, and the Stellar Development Foundation (SDF), a
non-profit organization that supports the development and growth of
Stellar, an open-source public blockchain that allows money to be
tokenized and transferred globally, today announced the initial
roll-out of a first-of-its-kind global on/off-ramp service for
digital wallets to increase the utility of digital assets by
creating a bridge between cash and cryptocurrencies. The service, a
result of the partnership between MoneyGram and SDF announced in
October 2021, is now available in a
number of key remittance markets, including Canada, Kenya, Philippines and the U.S. for the
first wave of users, with global cash-out functionality expected to
be available by the end of June
2022.
Powered by the Stellar blockchain and Stellar-enabled digital
wallets, MoneyGram's retail agent network, and Circle's USD
Coin (USDC), a fully-reserved dollar digital currency, the service
provides cash users access to the world of cryptocurrency via any
participating MoneyGram location. This service is a monumental step
towards bridging the gap between physical and digital currencies in
a way that has not been done before at scale. As it develops, this
solution will pave the way for blockchain technology to further
financial inclusion, creating fluidity between cash and crypto so
more people can benefit from the digital economy.
To support adoption, MoneyGram will offer this as a zero-fee
service for the first 12 months.
"We're thrilled to work alongside the Stellar Development
Foundation on this important initiative to bring more opportunities
to consumers around the world by making the worlds of crypto and
local fiat currency compatible," said Alex
Holmes, MoneyGram Chairman and CEO. "At MoneyGram, we're on
a mission to deliver innovative financial solutions that connect
the world's communities, and the initial launch of this service is
another important milestone on our journey. It's especially
exciting to launch this service ahead of schedule due to the strong
collaboration of our technology teams, and we look forward to
further collaboration with SDF as we work on uncovering new ways to
utilize blockchain to further streamline cross-border
payments."
The partnership focuses on delivering a service that
revolutionizes the settlement process. For the first time,
settlement with MoneyGram will occur in near-real-time using USDC,
one of the world's fastest growing dollar digital currencies. This
enables an accelerated collection of funds, improving efficiencies
and reducing risks.
"A much-needed solution to the cash-to-crypto on/off-ramp
problem is here," said Denelle
Dixon, CEO and Executive Director of the Stellar Development
Foundation. "Today, almost 2 billion people rely on cash for their
livelihood, with no options to access the digital economy. At the
same time, a persistent pain point for crypto-native users is
off-ramping cryptocurrency quickly and reliably. The groundbreaking
nature of this service is how it solves problems for a range
of users with varying needs around the world."
With the launch of this service, digital wallet users can now
move seamlessly from cash to cryptocurrency, to cash again — all
without requiring a bank account or credit card. Consumers can now
go into a MoneyGram location to either load their digital wallets
to access the digital economy, or cash-out their digital currencies
to increase the utility of their holdings.
Users of the Stellar-connected digital wallets Vibrant and
LOBSTR, with more wallets expected to be added soon, can now access
this service at MoneyGram's participating international retail
locations. This service also creates a developer platform that will
allow more businesses within the Stellar ecosystem and beyond,
including wallets and service providers, to expand the
functionality and reach of MoneyGram's integration with the Stellar
network. For example, Elliptic, a global leader in crypto asset
risk management, will provide MoneyGram with robust blockchain
analytics solutions, and Wyre, a leading provider of
blockchain payments APIs, will help other wallets, starting
with Airtm, a digital dollar account, integrate with the
MoneyGram service.
MoneyGram will expand access to the cash-in service into seven
more countries by the end of June, at which point cash-out
functionality will also be available globally, where permitted
by law. Learn more about the service and how to access it
at stellar.org/moneygram.
About MoneyGram International, Inc.
MoneyGram is
leading the evolution of digital P2P payments. With a
purpose-driven strategy to mobilize the movement of money, a strong
culture of fintech innovation, and leading customer-centric
capabilities, MoneyGram has grown to serve nearly 150 million
people around the world over the last five years. The Company
leverages its modern, mobile, and API-driven platform and
collaborates with the world's leading brands to serve consumers
through MoneyGram Online (MGO), its direct-to-consumer digital
business, its global retail network and its emerging embedded
finance business for enterprise customers, MoneyGram as a Service.
For more information, please visit ir.moneygram.com and follow
@MoneyGram.
About Stellar
Stellar is a decentralized, fast,
scalable, and uniquely sustainable network for financial products
and services. It is both a cross-currency transaction system and a
platform for digital asset issuance, designed to connect the
world's financial infrastructure. Financial institutions worldwide
issue assets and settle payments on the Stellar network, which has
grown to over 6 million accounts. For more information, visit
stellar.org.
About the Stellar Development Foundation
The Stellar
Development Foundation (SDF) is a non-profit organization that
supports the development and growth of Stellar, an open-source
network that connects the world's financial infrastructure. Founded
in 2014, the Foundation helps maintain Stellar's codebase, supports
the technical and business communities building on the network, and
serves as a voice to regulators and institutions. The Foundation
seeks to create equitable access to the global financial system,
using the Stellar network to unlock the world's economic potential
through blockchain technology. For more information, visit
stellar.org/foundation.
About Circle
Circle is a global financial technology
firm that enables businesses of all sizes to harness the power of
digital currencies and public blockchains for payments, commerce
and financial applications worldwide. Circle is the issuer of USD
Coin (USDC), one of the fastest growing dollar digital currencies
powering always-on internet-native commerce and payments. Today,
Circle's transactional services, business accounts, and platform
APIs are giving rise to a new generation of financial services and
commerce applications that hold the promise of raising global
economic prosperity for all through the frictionless exchange of
financial value. Additionally, Circle operates SeedInvest, a
leading startup fundraising platform in the U.S. Learn more at
https://circle.com
MoneyGram Media Contact
Sydney
Schoolfield
media@moneygram.com
Stellar Development Foundation Media
Contact
Carolyn Yi
media@stellar.org
Circle Media Contact
Elena
Zheng
press-us@circle.com
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SOURCE MoneyGram