- Bridge's New Development Step
- Bridge's Digital Payment Services
- Benefits of Stablecoins
Web3 payment platform Bridge, co-founded by former Square and Coinbase employees Zach Abrams and Sean Yu, has raised $58 million to develop its global stablecoin payment network.
Bridge's New Development Step
According to an August 29 Fortune report, Bridge has successfully completed a funding round, raising $58 million. Among the investors are Silicon Valley venture firms such as Sequoia, Ribbit, Index, and Haun Ventures. The round also includes a previously unannounced $40 million investment led by Sequoia and Ribbit. Bridge plans to use these funds to expand its services and promote stablecoin solutions to a wider audience.
Bridge's Digital Payment Services
Bridge's platform is designed to simplify the integration of stablecoin transactions into existing financial systems. The company offers two core services: Orchestration and Issuance. The Orchestration service provides APIs to convert various dollar formats, such as USD, EUR, USDC, PYUSD, and USDT. This ensures seamless cross-border payments and foreign currency exchanges with low fees and instant settlements.
Quote: *“We built Bridge as a low-level set of APIs that would enable companies to use a stablecoin rail without thinking about it,” Abrams said.*
The Issuance service allows developers to convert any of these dollar formats into customized stablecoins. This flexibility reportedly enables businesses to offer digital dollar-based services tailored to their specific needs. Through these services, Bridge aims to improve the adoption of stablecoins in company operations, resulting in a more cost-effective and efficient payment system.
Benefits of Stablecoins
The stablecoin market leaders, such as USDT and USDC, have reached market caps of $118 billion and $34.6 billion, respectively, in recent years. Stablecoins offer several advantages over traditional fiat currencies, including lower transaction fees and faster settlement times. Unlike fiat transactions, often subject to bank operating hours and high fees for cross-border payments, stablecoins enable instant, low-cost transfers that can be conducted 24/7.
Quote: Bridge aims for a future where stablecoins operate as the global payment rail, similar to how Stripe facilitates online payments or Plaid connects apps to bank accounts.
Despite numerous advantages, stablecoins face challenges around stability and transparency. For instance, the collapse of TerraUSD in 2022 raised widespread concerns about the reliability of stablecoins. In 2023, USDC temporarily lost its peg to the dollar but quickly recovered after the FDIC intervened. Tether, the market leader, has also faced scrutiny over its accounting practices. However, Bridge's founders believe their fintech background gives them a unique edge in navigating these challenges. The Bridge team aims to build a stablecoin platform that is reliable and accessible to a wide range of businesses, including crypto startups and companies dealing in traditional fiat currencies.
