In an effort to modernize and better serve the needs of its customers, MoneyGram has partnered with the Stellar network, which has supported many of the company’s blockchain initiatives over the past five years. But the company has also started exploring other ecosystems: While Stellar remains a core partner, MoneyGram has also become a validator on Solana and Tempo. For MoneyGram, the immediate gain is not speculative crypto-activity, it is replacing old financial rails.
Today’s cross-border settlement still depends to a large extent on banking hours and everyday processing. Blockchain-based infrastructure, Soohoo claimed, enables 24/7 real-time settlement, reducing operating costs while improving customer experience.
“We believe that if we do it right, we can achieve all three,” he said, referring to helping customers save time, effort and money. Instant settlement also allows MoneyGram to lower back-office costs, savings the company hopes to eventually pass on through lower prices. Currently, MoneyGram’s fees start at $1.89 and vary depending on which country you send them to.
Soohoo does not believe that consumers need to understand the technology that drives these improvements. He compared the blockchain to the processors inside Apple’s iPhone.
“I can’t tell you what processor is inside my iPhone,” he said. “I just know it’s faster.” Likewise, he argued, remittance clients care about whether money arrives quickly and reliably, not whether it traveled over a blockchain.
