Dallas-based MoneyGram has launched MGUSD, its own U.S. dollar stablecoin, as the foundation of a growing suite of financial services throughout its global network. The move positions the remittance giant as one of the first major money transfer operators to build its payments infrastructure on blockchain technology.

MGUSD, which launched on June 2 in the U.S. market with plans to scale globally, is designed not for cryptocurrency traders but for the billions of people who send money across borders or lack access to reliable financial services, the company said. The stablecoin will be integrated directly into the MoneyGram app through a self-custodial wallet, giving customers a stable, dollar-denominated balance they can hold and move at any time.

The stablecoin is made possible through a network of partnerships. Bridge, a Stripe company, serves as the regulated, GENIUS Act-compliant issuer. M0 provides the smart contract infrastructure to mint and burn MGUSD tokens. The Stellar blockchain handles token transactions, and Fireblocks secures the wallets where MoneyGram holds and distributes MGUSD to individual customer wallets embedded in the app.

Anthony Soohoo, Chairman and CEO of MoneyGram, said the company is taking a fundamentally different approach from other stablecoin issuers. The stablecoin market has largely focused on the asset itself, but MoneyGram is using stablecoin as connective tissue to build future applications on its global distribution platform, he said.

The launch comes amid a wave of corporate interest in stablecoins, driven by favorable regulatory developments and growing demand for faster, cheaper cross-border payments. MoneyGram’s existing network of agent locations in more than 200 countries and territories gives it a distribution advantage that most stablecoin projects cannot match.

For Dallas’ fintech sector, the MGUSD launch reinforces the city’s growing reputation as a hub for payments innovation. MoneyGram, which relocated its headquarters to Dallas in 2021, joins a cluster of financial technology companies in North Texas that are leveraging blockchain and digital assets to modernize legacy payment rails.

Source: Dallas Innovates | Business of Dallas