- Stripe, a leading US payments company, is reportedly in advanced discussions to acquire Bridge, a stablecoin infrastructure start-up, in a deal potentially valued at $1 billion.
- Neither Stripe nor Bridge have officially confirmed the negotiations, and the deal may not ultimately proceed.
- Bridge, launched in 2022, offers:
- An orchestration API for companies to store, move, and accept stablecoins.
- An issuance API for businesses to create their own stablecoin.
- The company was founded by Zach Abrams and Sean Yu, both former employees of Coinbase. They previously launched the Evenly payments platform, acquired by Square.
- Bridge has raised $58 million to date, with notable backers including Sequoia Capital, Ribbit Capital, Index Ventures, Haun Ventures, and Bedrock.
- This acquisition would align with Stripe’s strategy to expand its digital asset capabilities, following its plans to introduce stablecoin payments and an embeddable fiat-to-crypto onramp in 2023.
