MoonPay's Iron Acquisition Signals Stablecoin Industry Consolidation

Forbes

21-03-2025

MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA - FEBRUARY 20: Ivan Soto-Wright, CEO & Co-Founder, MoonPay, speaks during the ... More second day of the FII PRIORITY Summit held at the Faena Hotel on February 20, 2025 in Miami Beach, Florida. The summit brings together global leaders with a special focus on the Global South to develop strategies to address pressing international issues in areas including healthcare, education, sustainability and AI. (Photo by)
The stablecoin industry is witnessing a wave of strategic acquisitions as companies position themselves for dominance in the rapidly expanding digital payments landscape. MoonPay's recent acquisition of Iron, an API-driven stablecoin infrastructure startup, marks yet another significant consolidation in this space, revealing a race to build comprehensive stablecoin payment networks that could rival traditional financial rails.
MoonPay's Iron acquisition represents its second major purchase in just two months, following the $175 million acquisition of Helio in January. This aggressive expansion strategy closely mirrors competitor Stripe's record-breaking $1.1 billion acquisition of Bridge Network, which was the largest deal in crypto history.
"This is our Braintree moment," MoonPay CEO Ivan Soto-Wright told CNBC, referring to PayPal's historic acquisition of the payments processor that now handles nearly $600 billion in annual payment volume for giants like Meta. The comparison is telling: MoonPay sees stablecoin infrastructure as similarly transformative to how Braintree reshaped online payments.
MoonPay, valued at $3.4 billion in its last funding round, isn't making these purchases from a position of weakness. The company reported 112% year-over-year net revenue growth in 2024 and is already profitable and cash-flow positive, demonstrating the financial viability of stablecoin-powered business models.
What's driving this acquisition frenzy? According to the CNBC report on the MoonPay-Iron deal, stablecoins facilitated an estimated $27 trillion in transfers during 2024 alone. The recent Dune Artemis report provides additional context, showing that stablecoin monthly transfer volume more than doubled year-over-year, reaching $4.1 trillion in February 2025.
As Mike Hudack, founder of Sling Money and ex-CPO of Monzo, noted in a recent interview:
This efficiency is attracting serious enterprise attention. MoonPay isn't simply acquiring infrastructure to serve crypto enthusiasts. It's building payment rails that could potentially serve major global corporations seeking cheaper, faster cross-border settlement options.
The Dune Artemis report reveals stablecoin supply has grown from $138 billion to $225 billion over the past year, marking a 63% year-over-year increase. This expansion isn't just about more coins in circulation. It represents growing mainstream adoption of stablecoin technology.
Standard Chartered recently predicted that stablecoins could grow to represent approximately 10% of all foreign exchange transactions, up from just 1% today. This tenfold growth potential explains why companies like MoonPay and Stripe are racing to secure key infrastructure.
"Stablecoins are going to be a very important part" of the future payment landscape, Soto-Wright told CNBC. "We think it is an internet-driven payment method you'll see all across the world."
While MoonPay focuses on enterprise infrastructure, companies like Sling Money are approaching the stablecoin revolution from a consumer-first perspective. This divergence in strategy creates an interesting competitive dynamic in the industry.
MoonPay's acquisition of Iron strengthens its ability to offer businesses stablecoin payment capabilities, similar to how Stripe's Bridge Network acquisition enables merchants to accept stablecoin payments without directly handling digital tokens.
In contrast, Sling Money emphasizes self-custody and peer-to-peer transfers, building what Hudack describes as "the WhatsApp of money." Their focus is on making stablecoins accessible to everyday users in both developed and emerging markets.
Both approaches have merit. MoonPay's enterprise strategy might lead to faster institutional adoption, while Sling's consumer approach could drive grassroots stablecoin usage. Either way, the infrastructure to support massive stablecoin adoption is being built at an accelerating pace.
A key factor enabling these major acquisitions is increasing regulatory clarity around stablecoins in major jurisdictions. The European Union's Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA) framework, Singapore's stablecoin regulations, and progress toward U.S. stablecoin legislation have all provided the certainty needed for major corporate investments.
"Circle, USDC's issuer, became the first stablecoin provider licensed under the EU's Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA) framework in 2024," notes the Dune Artemis report, highlighting how regulatory compliance is becoming a competitive advantage rather than a hindrance for stablecoin issuers.
This improved regulatory environment makes acquisitions like MoonPay-Iron less risky for both the companies involved and their enterprise customers, who require regulatory certainty before adopting new payment technologies.
As MoonPay integrates Iron's technology and Stripe builds on Bridge Network's capabilities, we're likely to see increasingly sophisticated stablecoin payment offerings emerge in the coming months. These platforms will likely focus on seamless fiat on/off ramps for businesses, cross-chain stablecoin liquidity, compliance tools for enterprise stablecoin usage, integration with existing payment processors, and support for multiple stablecoin types.
"We think everyone is going to have a digital currency wallet, whether it's inside of a bank account or independently," Soto-Wright explained in his CNBC interview. As this vision materializes, the companies that control the underlying infrastructure will wield significant influence over the future of digital payments.
MoonPay's acquisition of Iron represents more than just one company's expansion. It signals a broader maturation of the stablecoin ecosystem from experimental technology to critical financial infrastructure. As consolidation continues and transaction volumes grow, stablecoins are increasingly positioned to challenge traditional payment rails for global dominance.
With billions in acquisition capital now flowing into stablecoin infrastructure and monthly transaction volumes reaching trillions of dollars, it's clear that stablecoins have moved beyond the crypto niche and into the mainstream of financial services innovation. The race to build tomorrow's payment rails is now in full swing, and MoonPay's aggressive acquisitions show they're determined to lead the pack.