MoneyGram joins Stellar as Tier 1 validator in payments push

The Stellar Development Foundation said Thursday that MoneyGram, Figure Markets, and blockchain security firm Range will run Tier 1 validators on the Stellar network, upgrading the companies from users to operators of the chain.

MoneyGram announced its own role on X, writing that it began building on Stellar five years ago and now will help to "power it." The company confirmed it is "now a Tier 1 validator on Stellar," to assist with payments and compliance.

Validators run the nodes that decide which transactions are valid before they are committed to the blockchain. Stellar operates on a proof-of-agreement model called the Stellar Consensus Protocol, which does not pay validators in the same manner that proof-of-stake chains reward stakers. A proof-of-agreement model involves operators taking on the cost and maintenance of the network without any direct financial incentive, according to the Stellar Development Foundation.

"The Stellar network's proof-of-agreement consensus lets any institution run a publicly identifiable validator and choose exactly whom to trust," Jose Fernandez da Ponte, president and chief growth officer at the SDF, said in the announcement. He added that bringing in MoneyGram, Figure Markets, and Range makes the network stronger in the long run.

Justin Rice, the foundation's vice president of ecosystem growth, said the three new validators will be taking an active part in the blockchain's growth. "The organizations stepping up to run Tier 1 validators are not passive participants… they have a direct stake in the network's long-term security and neutrality," he stated.