As the online payment processing company attempts to establish itself as a major participant in the cryptocurrency field, Stripe took a ground-breaking move.
According to reports, the fintech company completed a historic acquisition deal to purchase the stablecoin platform Bridge. This move caused a stir in the cryptocurrency community.
Stripe-Bridge Purchase Agreement
Michael Arrington, the creator of TechCrunch, revealed that payment processing company Stripe acquired fintech startup Bridge for a reported $1.1 billion. The two companies engaged in the deal have yet to make an official statement or offer any details as of publication.
Sources claim that Bridge’s acquisition cost of $1.1 billion represents the largest acquisition in the cryptocurrency market to date. The transaction outperformed other recent noteworthy purchases, like CoinShares’ $530 million purchase of Valkyrie Funds and Robinhood’s $200 million contract to acquire Bitstamp.
The transaction is viewed as a component of Stripe’s proactive reaction to worldwide trends, a step to enhance its competitiveness in meeting the growing market for bitcoin services.
Users’ Bitcoin transactions may be streamlined by integrating the two companies, albeit the agreement’s specifics have yet to be released.
Interest in Stablecoins at Stripe
The purchase is in line with Stripe’s decision to accept stablecoin payments. John Collison, a co-founder of the company, pledged six months ago that the company would back stablecoin transactions.
The well-known stablecoin Circle USD was recently added to Stripe’s payment interface.
After a six-year hiatus, Stripe declared in April this year that it will return to the cryptocurrency industry. Using bitcoins for everyday payments has become popular among businesses worldwide.
What Bridge will Accomplish
Companies use Bridge to make international payments, and as part of that process, they use stablecoins.
Bridge has processed an annual payment volume exceeding $5 billion to date. SpaceX, the US Treasury, the US State Department, and Coinbase are a few of its well-known clientele.
In the financial industry, stablecoins like USDC, Dai, and Tether are increasingly preferred. Stablecoins are expected to have a combined market capitalization of more than $170 billion.
A New Payment Era
Stripe can process cryptocurrency-enabled payments for its customers in the US with Bridge’s assistance.
The company has yet to disclose its post-Bridge acquisition strategy, including whether it will merge Bridge into its current platform or keep it apart.
The acquisition of Stripe by Bridge emphasizes how payment processing is changing and how companies are forced to adopt new solutions to close the gap between cryptocurrencies and conventional finance.
