MoonPay, a leading crypto payment company, has taken a significant step towards establishing itself in the institutional market with the acquisition of Sodot, a prominent Israeli crypto security startup. This strategic move is part of MoonPay's plan to introduce MoonPay Institutional, a dedicated unit designed to cater to the needs of large financial institutions seeking to engage with cryptocurrency. According to sources, the acquisition is valued at approximately $100 million in an all-stock deal. The new institutional unit will provide an array of services, including trading tools, tokenized securities, payment solutions, wallet management, and stablecoin issuance, with Sodot's technology serving as the foundational key management layer.
Caroline D. Pham, who recently joined MoonPay as Chief Legal Officer and Chief Administrative Officer after her tenure as Acting Chair of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, will lead MoonPay Institutional. Sodot's innovative self-hosted multi-party computation (MPC) infrastructure is particularly suited for institutions requiring stringent control over asset movement, transfer approvals, and automated transaction handling. Known for facilitating crypto purchases and sales through various payment methods, MoonPay has been expanding its enterprise infrastructure capabilities, as evident from its recent acquisitions of stablecoin platform Iron and crypto checkout firm Helio.
With nearly 30 million customers worldwide and powering the infrastructure for 500 firms within the decentralized economy, MoonPay is poised to make a significant impact in the institutional crypto space.