🚀 Stellar Soars: MoneyGram Joins as Validator in Blockbuster Crypto Partnership!

Payments giant MoneyGram has significantly deepened its involvement with the Stellar network, announcing its new role as a Tier 1 validator. This development comes five years after the Dallas, Texas-headquartered company initially formed a partnership with the Stellar Development Foundation. MoneyGram will be joined by borrowing platform Figure Markets and wealth management platform Range, both of which are also set to begin operating Tier 1 validators. The activation of this new roster of validators is anticipated by mid-August.

Becoming a validator on a blockchain network is a critical role, as validators are entrusted with maintaining the integrity of the blockchain by verifying transactions and actively participating in the network's consensus mechanism. On the Stellar network, Tier 1 validators hold a particularly important position. They are required to operate multiple geographically distributed validator nodes and are integral participants in the Stellar Consensus Protocol. Each validator operates autonomously, making independent selections of the trusted participants they rely upon to achieve agreement on the ledger's state.

Stellar's consensus model distinguishes itself from typical proof-of-work and proof-of-stake networks in that it does not provide validators with rewards in the form of newly issued tokens. Instead, organizations choose to run validators primarily to enhance the overall security and decentralization of the network. To qualify as a Tier 1 validator, strict requirements must be met, including operating three geographically dispersed full validator nodes and maintaining an impressive uptime of at least 99.9%, alongside other specific criteria.

MoneyGram's journey into the crypto space began prior to its embrace of Stellar. In 2019, MoneyGram was one of Ripple's most prominent enterprise partners. This partnership was cemented with a $50 million investment from Ripple into MoneyGram and focused on the implementation of On-Demand Liquidity (ODL), Ripple's cross-border settlement product that leverages XRP. This collaboration was widely recognized as one of Ripple's most significant commercial achievements.

However, the partnership with Ripple came to an abrupt end following the lawsuit filed by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) against Ripple in December 2020. MoneyGram subsequently suspended its use of Ripple's ODL service in early 2021, marking a clear pivot towards its rival, Stellar.

The initial collaboration between MoneyGram and the Stellar Development Foundation dates back to 2021. Their joint efforts led to the creation of one of the pioneering large-scale blockchain-powered cash on- and off-ramp networks, which officially went live in 2022. Since its inception, the partnership has evolved and broadened beyond simple remittances.

Today, the Stellar network is the core infrastructure powering MoneyGram Ramps, the company's dedicated blockchain infrastructure for cash access. Furthermore, Stellar serves as the exclusive blockchain technology behind MoneyGram's consumer digital dollar balance feature. Josh Gordon-Blake, the executive vice president and general manager of MoneyGram Online, emphasized the strategic importance of this move, stating, "We have recently decided to become a validator on the Stellar network, and the reason why that's so important to us is that we vividly see the benefits of crypto, the benefits of stables." He underscored MoneyGram's determination not to be left behind in the evolving financial landscape, reinforcing that becoming a Tier 1 validator is a significant step beyond merely building on the Stellar network.