MoneyGram Partners With Stellar for USDC Settlements
- The partnership will see MoneyGram connect its network to the Stellar blockchain, allowing connected wallets to access its global retail platform.
- The financial service company will also work with Circle to enable “near-instant backend settlement” using the USDC stablecoin.
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MoneyGram users will soon be able to send money using the USDC stablecoin, and convert them to and from fiat directly, thanks to a new partnership with the Stellar Development Foundation, the company said in a press release on 6 October.
According to the announcement, the collaboration will see MoneyGram integrate its network with the Stellar Network, enabling wallets connected to the blockchain to access its global retail platform. The financial services company will also work with Circle’s USD Coin (USDC) stablecoin to settle payments and convert payouts to a user’s local currency near-instantly. The CEO and Executive Director of the Stellar Development Foundation, Denelle Dixon, said in a statement:
“Thanks to the reach of MoneyGram’s services and the speed and low cost of transactions on Stellar, a new segment of cash users will be able to convert their cash into and out of USDC, giving them access to fast and affordable digital asset services that may have previously been out of reach.”
The new service is expected to launch at the end of 2021 in selected jurisdictions, but MoneyGram has planned for an expended international rollout in 2022. The United Texas Bank was chosen to play the role of a settlement bank between Circle and MoneyGram. The partnership came only months after MoneyGram allowed its customers to to buy and sell BTC at its retail locations around the U.S., in partnership with crypto exchange operator Coinme.
The financial services company also has experience in blockchain technology, having previously partnered with Ripple on cross-border payments and foreign exchange settlements with digital assets. The partnership ended in March due to Ripple’s continued fight with the U.S. SEC on whether its XRP token constituted an unregistered security or not. Recently it became known that Circle is cooperating with a subpoena from the SEC, which was issued back in July.
- The digital ID project said Orb Operators received USDC payments as part of the project’s transitional phase after launch, and now that it is nearing its end Worldcoin will be switching to WLD payments.
- Worldcoin warned Orb Operators to check if they can claim rewards in their region as WLD are not available in the United States and “certain other restricted territories”.
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- A federal judge ruled that the sale of XRP through exchanges and algorithms did not qualify as selling securities, which could have a major impact on several SEC lawsuits.
- The institutional sale of the token, however, did violate federal securities laws, and the lawsuit between the SEC and Ripple will have to go to trial.
- These documents are seen as central in Ripple’s battle against the SEC, which in 2020 accused the company of selling its XRP token without registering it as a security.
- The documents in question are internal emails, text messages, and expert reports that followed Hinman’s 2018 speech, in which he said ETH and BTC were not securities.