US-based financial technology company MoneyGram has introduced a new service that allows consumers to buy, sell, and hold cryptocurrency. This new service will allow nearly all US customers to buy, sell, and hold cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Litecoin, and the company plans to extend the offering in 2023 depending on global regulations.

The implementation follows MoneyGram’s minority investment in crypto exchange Coinme, the licensed cryptocurrency exchange and API-driven crypto-as-a-service provider that enables the new functionality. In 2021, MoneyGram worked with Coinme to allow customers to buy and sell Bitcoin for cash at 12,000 retail locations in the US. MoneyGram officials have highlighted in the official press release that the company enables instant access to over 120 currencies around the globe, and that crypto and digital currencies are treated as another input and output option.

The same officials revealed that providing access to a trusted and easy-to-use platform to securely buy, sell and hold select cryptocurrencies represents the next step in the evolution of MoneyGram. Moreover, the feature launch comes in the context of an ascending trend as far as consumer interest in digital currencies is concerned. MoneyGram wants to position itself to meet these new demands by leveraging its global network, expertise in compliance, and recent initiatives in the space.

Other crypto-related MoneyGram launches in 2022 In June 2022, MoneyGram has rolled out a service that allows users to buy cryptocurrency using cash, as well as letting them withdraw their crypto holdings in cash. The new service is the result of a partnership between MoneyGram and the Stellar Development Foundation (SDF), the organization behind the open-source public blockchain Stellar that allows money to be tokenised and transferred globally. The functionality of exchanging cash for cryptocurrency and back to cash again aims to offer unbanked populations access to the digital economy.

Moreover, the fund transfer capabilities don’t require a bank account or a credit card. In March 2022, MoneyGram and Stellar Development Foundation partnered with Techstars for blockchain-based cross-border payments. The collaboration is aimed at technologies that facilitate the movement of money to and from Latin America.

Each year until 2024, the programme will select a class of up to 12 fintech startups to participate in a 13-week agenda where entrepreneurs will work with mentors from Techstars, Stellar, and MoneyGram to improve their value proposition and product-market-fit. .