Case Study

How MoneyGram International Connects the Digital to Physical

Industry

Fintech

Location

United States

Use cases

Stellar Ramps

On and off-ramps

About

This is Moneygram International

MoneyGram International (MGI) is a global financial technology company that enables consumers and businesses to move and manage money in nearly every country around the world. Through its expansive set of fintech offerings, MoneyGram International provides millions of consumers annually the ability to seamlessly send money home to family and friends.

Challenge

Last Mile Delivery

Digital assets have long been proposed as a solution to revolutionize the current financial system. The proposed benefits include the ability to send money cross-border quickly and affordably with a revolutionized and near-instant settlement process.

But the reality is that the promise of digital assets cannot be fully realized until the last-mile problem is addressed. While sending and storing digital assets is relatively easy with current wallet technology, many participants of the informal economy – roughly 2 billion workers, or over 60% of the world’s adult labor force – do not have access to bank accounts or credit cards required to readily use these digital assets.1 To them, cash reigns supreme over any other form of value.

So how can those in the cash economy leverage digital assets to store and move their cash more efficiently?

Cash-to-crypto is a new kind of business use case for MGI, so we’ve been getting to know the digital wallets in the crypto space and establishing an application/registration process to ensure they can leverage MoneyGram Access™ from an operational, legal, and compliance perspective. Once wallet applications have integrated with Stellar Ecosystem Proposal-24 (SEP-24), it’s fairly easy for them to onboard and start testing the on and off-ramps.

Alicia Smith, ‍Head of Business & New Fintech Products · MoneyGram International

Solution

Add Web3 access for everyone

For over 80 years, MGI has been in the business of payments. Building upon their core business of remittances, MGI has evolved into a global fintech serving a massive and diverse client base worldwide.

Part of that evolution includes pioneering in Web3 and innovative payment technologies. Identifying an opportunity to combine their global reach with the power of blockchain, MGI built MoneyGram Access, a product enabled by the Stellar blockchain. By leveraging the Stellar network, MoneyGram Access provides cash-to-crypto on and off-ramps at any of their participating locations.

With MoneyGram Access and USDC, a fully-reserved digital dollar stablecoin backed by cash, repo, and short-dated US Treasuries, people can use their money in ways they couldn’t before. They can send it to another wallet across the globe or hold onto it for as long as they need, protecting themselves from market volatility. And whenever they need money in physical form, people can withdraw their USDC and pick it up in their local currency at a participating MoneyGram location.

Connecting On and Off-Ramps to Stellar-Powered Wallets & Applications

By integrating with SEP-24, organizations like MGI can connect their on and off-ramps directly to the Stellar network and its ecosystem. The Stellar network supports wallets and applications serving users worldwide, providing MGI with access to new potential user bases.
In turn, wallets and applications can integrate with MoneyGram Access to directly plug into MGI's enormous retail network of participating kiosks and locations. This allows users to deposit or withdraw cash from their wallets via USDC on the Stellar network without needing a bank account.

Solving the Last Mile Problem without a Bank Account

By using a wallet that supports MoneyGram Access, people can now access cash-to-crypto on and off-ramps at participating MoneyGram locations. They have two options: to cash-in and cash-out.
To ‘cash-in’ and turn their physical cash into USDC, users enter the amount of USDC they want to purchase, provide additional information, and select the MoneyGram location for cash payment all on their wallet. Users can then exchange their cash for USDC at the selected MoneyGram location.
To ‘cash-out’ and turn USDC back into physical cash, users enter the amount of local currency they want to withdraw from their USDC balance in any denomination they desire. Users follow a similar flow as above in their wallet and select a MoneyGram location for pick-up. Users then present the transaction confirmation code right from their digital wallet to the agent at the MoneyGram location of their choice to pick up their cash in person.

USDC on the Stellar network for Quick, Easy Settlement

Transaction fees on Stellar are so low – less than a fraction of a cent – that Vibrant can sponsor them upfront on behalf of its users. On Vibrant, users don’t have to pay transaction fees in order to deposit, withdraw, or exchange their money.
The concept of leveraging a stablecoin for cash-to-crypto on and off-ramps greatly appealed to MGI, as they understood the apprehension of the unbanked and underbanked with respect to volatile cryptocurrencies.
By leveraging USDC on the Stellar network, MGI is able to combine the strengths of a thoroughly-audited fiat-backed stablecoin with a network optimized for quick, easy, and affordable payments. Transaction fees on the network are just a fraction of a cent.

Stellar helps people access assets and financial services they wouldn't otherwise have access to.

Luther Maday, ‍Head of Fintech & Innovation · MoneyGram International

Developer Documentation

Dive into the docs

On and off-ramps are core to transferring value between fiat and digital assets on the Stellar network. As the number of on and off-ramps on the Stellar network continues to grow, there are more payment services than ever for digital wallets to connect to. Explore our developer documentation to discover how.

Stellar Ramps enables wallets to seamlessly plug into these on and off-ramp services without needing to customize an integration with each individual anchor. Instead, they can leverage the Stellar network’s interoperable standard for on and off-ramping to access MoneyGram’s cash-to-crypto deposit and withdrawal services.

Integration Guide

Developer Docs

Results

Impact

This cash-to-crypto use case is the first of its kind, with the potential to be realized on a massive scale. In fact, the versatility of MoneyGram Access may be a boon for other urgent use cases around the world. For example, mass cash-based aid disbursements powered by Stellar Aid Assist would not be possible without people being able to receive USDC quickly and cash it out in physical fiat at a nearby MoneyGram location.

This is just the beginning. As more and more financial services come to blockchain, people based in cash economies will gain access to the same financial services that are often taken for granted. Cash-to-crypto is powering real-world blockchain solutions and creating more equitable access to the global financial system.

180+

Countries Supporting Cash-Out Off-Ramps

300K

Locations

7

Wallets integrated with MoneyGram Access

Connect

Want to know more?

Contact us today to learn how your business can use Stellar to enable frictionless cross-border payment services and how the Stellar Development Foundation can help.

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