Crypto payments company MoonPay is moving into institutional services after acquiring Sodot, a startup focused on digital asset security.
Summary
- MoonPay is acquiring Sodot in a deal reportedly worth around $100 million, using its key management expertise to launch an institutional division.
- The new unit will serve financial institutions in all transactions, tokenized assets, payments, custodial infrastructure, and stablecoin issuance, led by Caroline Pham.
- The move comes amid growing demand for secure crypto custody solutions, with firms like OKX and BitGo also expanding institutional offerings.
The company said Wednesday it will use Sodot’s key management technology as the backbone of a new division designed for financial institutions, asset managers, trading firms, and exchanges that tap into crypto markets.
“We built MoonPay to be the leading crypto payment network in the world,” founder and CEO Ivan Soto-Wright said in a statement, adding that launching an institutional arm represents “the next phase” in the company’s growth.
According to Bloomberg, the transaction was closed in April as a stock deal valued at $100 million. MoonPay did not immediately respond to requests for confirmation of terms.
This agreement marks a shift beyond MoonPay’s retail payment business as demand grows among traditional financial companies for secure wallet infrastructure and cash storage solutions while incorporating digital assets.
MoonPay is looking for institutional customers
The new division will focus on serving the major financial players in all trades, tokenized securities, payments, wallet infrastructure, and stablecoin issuance.
The leadership of this division has been given to Caroline Pham, who joined MoonPay in December as chief legal and administrative officer after serving as acting chairman of the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
“There is no one better suited to lead this business than Caroline,” said Soto-Wright, pointing to her experience in financial management and capital markets.
Sodot was founded in 2023, creating a crypto key management infrastructure, which is a key component in acquiring digital assets and using institutional-level wallets. Its technology is based on self-hosted multiparty computation, or MPC, which divides private keys into multiple pieces held by different parties to strengthen security.
The race for institutional preservation is gathering pace
The purchase comes as many crypto firms are expanding services designed for institutions, especially in terms of storage and trading infrastructure.
Last week, crypto exchange OKX issued a joint trading agreement with BitGo, a move that reduces the need for traders to purchase exchange accounts up front. The setup allows institutions to store assets with a third-party custodian while still accessing cash from the trade.
Such developments point to a growing push across the industry to build systems that meet the performance and security standards expected of large financial firms entering the crypto market.
