Payment processing giant Stripe is reportedly in the final stages of acquiring Bridge, a Sequoia-backed company focused on stablecoin-based fund transfers, with the deal potentially worth around $1 billion. There is sex.
If the deal goes through, it would be Stripe’s largest acquisition to date. However, according to Bloomberg, the deal is still far from certain as both sides could still pull out.
Co-founded by former Square and Coinbase executives, Bridge integrates stablecoins like USDC and USDT into traditional financial systems, enabling cross-border payments and currency exchange. The Texas-based company is gaining momentum through partnerships like its one with Bitso in business-to-business payments in Latin America.
Stripe initially became a leader in the cryptocurrency space when it introduced Bitcoin payment support in 2014. However, it discontinued this feature in 2018 due to declining demand, long trading times, rising fees, and price volatility. The company reintroduced cryptocurrency payments last week, supporting USDC stablecoin transactions on Ethereum, Solana, and Polygon networks.
Paxos also announced that Stripe will be the first PSP to integrate its new enterprise-grade stablecoin payment platform. Stripe’s Pay with Crypto product, which allows businesses to accept payments in stablecoins, is powered by Paxos technology and allows these payments to be settled in fiat currencies such as the US dollar.
Stripe already supports payments from over 70 countries, and incorporating stablecoin payments will allow businesses to accept payments from anywhere in the world.
Additionally, Stripe has been integrating its crypto services in recent months, including partnering with Coinbase and launching crypto purchasing options for European vendors.
Bridge recently secured $58 million in funding from investors including Sequoia and Ribbit, reflecting growing interest in stablecoin-based payment solutions.
The stablecoin market is experiencing rapid growth, with the market total exceeding $170 billion in September 2024. Large players such as Tether (USDT), Circle (USDC), and PayPal (PYUSD) continue to dominate the space.
