Stellar, MoneyGram pair with Techstars to develop blockchain payments startups

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Valentina Vitali
Valentina Vitali
Research Analyst
Valentina is a Research Analyst and passionate about payments and fintech. Valentin enjoys analysing money transfer companies and the market. In her work, Valentina analyses payments data… Read more
  • MoneyGram and the Stellar Development Foundation will partner with Techstars to run a startup accelerator.
  • The aim of the accelerator is to find new, blockchain-based cross-border payment solutions and innovators.
  • “As we look to reach founders in the Americas, this program will provide early-stage blockchain and digital asset innovators the advantages and resources they need to succeed in building an inclusive, accessible financial system, and deliver world-changing solutions,” said a spokesperson for Techstars.

A partnership between blockchain non-profit the Stellar Development Foundation, remittances and online money transfer major MoneyGram and entrepreneurial support and investment platform Techstars will see the launch of a cross-border payments-focused startup accelerator. 

Focusing on the movement of money to and from Latin America, the accelerator will see early-stage fintech startups participate in an immersive programme to develop blockchain and digital asset-based solutions to cross-border payments.

As part of the agreement, the accelerator will run once a year for the next three years, with each cohort including up to 12 startups. 

Each programme will run for 13 weeks, and will include mentoring from experts at all three companies.

Participating startups will have the chance to present their projects at the end of each programme.

The accelerator builds on an existing partnership between Stellar and MoneyGram to provide stablecoin-based remittances with local currency payout. 

In a statement, the chief executive officer of the Stellar Development Foundation said that the organisation was aiming to boost “access to the financial system” – and that innovators such as the ones entering the programme would be able to help in that regard.

Denelle Dixon, who also serves as its executive director, said that the company wanted the “next generation”.

“We believe that we can improve access to the financial system for all participants, and we’re proud to work with MoneyGram and Techstars to empower the next generation of innovators to build a more inclusive and accessible cross-border payments system that takes full advantage of 21st-century technology,” she explained.

For Techstars, meanwhile, the chief executive officer said that there were great ideas all around – but that “access to opportunity” was thin on the ground.

Maëlle Gavet said that the company was aiming to discover founders in many different parts of the world.

“At Techstars, we believe great ideas are everywhere, but access to opportunity is not, which is why our global-investment model is to reach founders anywhere and everywhere,” she explained.

She went on to say that the company was looking for founders in the Americas in particular.

“As we look to reach founders in the Americas, this program will provide early-stage blockchain and digital asset innovators the advantages and resources they need to succeed in building an inclusive, accessible financial system, and deliver world-changing solutions,” she said.

These are just two of the organisations that operate in the cross-border payments sector – if you want to learn more about what’s going on in the industry, head over to our reviews pages where you can get the latest insights.


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