MoneyGram has rolled out a service allowing users to buy cryptocurrency using cash, as well as letting them withdraw their crypto holdings in cash.
The service is currently available in the US, Canada, Kenya, and the Philippines. The new service is the result of a partnership between MoneyGram and the Stellar Development Foundation (SDF), the organization behind open-source public blockchain Stellar that allows money to be tokenized and transferred globally.
MoneyGram and SDF originally partnered in October 2021, when the two piloted the functionality that allowed digital wallet holders to deposit cash into their digital wallets at MoneyGram locations, send payments internationally via Stellar, and exchange Stellar for cash currency.
The functionality of exchanging cash to cryptocurrency and back to cash again aims to offer unbanked populations access to the digital economy. The fund transfer capabilities don’t require a bank account or a credit card. Consumers that hold a digital wallet with Vibrant or LOBSTR can visit a participating MoneyGram location to load their digital wallets using cash or to cash out their digital currency holdings into cash.
MoneyGram expects to collaborate with more digital wallets in the future. To incentivize adoption of the crypto in/out feature among its 150 million customers, MoneyGram is not charging a fee for the service for the first year.
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