[NEWS] US payments company Stripe acquires Bridge to expand stablecoin business

On the 21st, Stripe, a US fintech payment company, acquired Bridge, a stablecoin payment startup. According to Forbes, the acquisition price is $1.1 billion (approximately 165 billion yen).

Founded in 2010 by IT tycoons John Collinson and Patrick Collinson, Stripe was valued at $65 billion (approximately 9.7 trillion yen) earlier this year, making it one of the most highly valued private startups in the United States.

The cryptocurrency industry has been gaining momentum since the SEC (US Securities and Exchange Commission) approved a Bitcoin spot ETF earlier this year. The way is now open for cryptocurrency acceptance by major companies amid growing calls for deregulation.

"Stablecoins are the room-temperature superconductors of financial services. Thanks to stablecoins, businesses around the world will benefit from significant improvements in speed, coverage, and cost over the next few years," Stripe CEO Collinson said in a post on X. "Stripe plans to build the world's best stablecoin infrastructure, and we're pleased to welcome stablecoins to Stripe."

The acquisition of Bridge appears to be aimed at expanding Stripe's cryptocurrency capabilities, particularly stablecoins. Bridge provides B2B stablecoin infrastructure to enable businesses to support payments using stablecoins.

Stripe's acquisition of Bridge will be important in pushing the use of stablecoins into the mainstream. At the moment, stablecoins have been used mainly in cryptocurrency transactions and in countries with concerns about fiat currencies. However, the integration with Stripe, which has influence in the financial sector, may lead to more active use of stablecoins in payments than ever before.

Reference: Announcement,Forbes
Image: Shutterstock

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