MoneyGram rolls out MGUSD dollar stablecoin on Stellar, targeting 60 million users
MoneyGram on June 2, 2026 introduced MGUSD, a U.S. dollar stablecoin issued by Bridge (a Stripe company) and built natively on the Stellar blockchain. The token is integrated into the MoneyGram app, allowing customers to access a self-custodial wallet.
The company said MGUSD enables its more than 60 million active customers to hold and move digital dollars 24/7, with cash-in and cash-out available across nearly 500,000 retail locations globally. The launch begins in the U.S., with a broader international rollout planned.
MoneyGram said Bridge is "GENIUS Act ready," while minting and burning are handled through M0's smart contract infrastructure. MGUSD is held in Fireblocks wallets before being routed to customer wallets embedded in the MoneyGram app. Users can maintain a dollar-denominated balance, send funds globally around the clock, and convert to local currency at MoneyGram agent locations.
Chairman and CEO Anthony Soohoo said MoneyGram is positioning stablecoins as infrastructure rather than a standalone asset. "The stablecoin market has largely focused on the asset itself," Soohoo said. "MoneyGram is taking a fundamentally different approach. Starting with our distribution platform, we're using stablecoin as a foundation to build future applications on our global network. MGUSD is the stablecoin we built for our customers, for the families sending money home and for the billions of people around the world with limited financial access."
MoneyGram operates in more than 170 countries and said over 70% of its transactions are now digital.
For Stellar and its native token XLM, the launch deepens MoneyGram's relationship with the Stellar Development Foundation, a partnership that dates back more than five years. Previous initiatives included USDC-based cash-in and cash-out at MoneyGram agent locations and stablecoin wallet features rolled out in Colombia and El Salvador.
On Stellar, MGUSD transactions require XLM for network fees and minimum account reserves, a dynamic that could lift demand and lock up additional XLM as activity scales. Stellar's built-in decentralized exchange (DEX) can also route XLM as a bridge asset within payment paths.
Stellar Development Foundation CEO Denelle Dixon highlighted the scope of the integration. "Stellar was built for real-world utility at institutional scale," Dixon said. "Our five-year partnership with MoneyGram is proof that stablecoins have moved well beyond pilots. Together, we've expanded financial access to millions of families and communities who need it most. MGUSD is the next milestone that demonstrates what purpose-built blockchain can deliver when paired with a trusted payments network."
Chief Product and Technology Officer Luke Tuttle said MoneyGram rebuilt core systems over the past year to support stablecoin payment rails, including issuance, orchestration, and settlement. He described the outcome as a single payments layer connecting cash, mobile, and digital access, positioning MoneyGram as one of the few omnichannel payment networks capable of bridging cash and blockchain at scale.
The MGUSD announcement follows an April 2026 extension of MoneyGram's partnership with Stellar covering stablecoin features in Latin America. It also comes as institutional activity on Stellar expands, including tokenized fund initiatives from established financial firms.
For traders watching XLM, the near-term takeaway is usage-driven: more wallets, more users, and higher daily transaction volumes would increase on-chain activity tied to the network's native token, with MoneyGram's physical agent footprint providing a large-scale cash on-ramp and off-ramp.
XLM price action has been strong over medium-term windows, up 53.2% over the past seven days and 58.5% over the past two weeks, with a 30-day gain of 45.0%. Shorter-term moves show a pullback, with XLM down 0.9% in the past hour and 12.5% over the past 24 hours, suggesting profit-taking after a sharp run-up. Over one year, XLM remains down 12.9%.
