Midnight Network has officially announced that the global money transfer giant, MoneyGram, has joined as the latest operator to run their federated nodes. Alongside MoneyGram, other major entities including the investment platform eToro and Pairpoint—a joint venture between Vodafone and Japan’s Sumitomo Corporation—have also committed to this initiative.

Preparing for Mainnet Launch

Last week, Midnight Network revealed its strategy to rely on a network of trusted partners to operate the federated nodes that will govern its mainnet, which is scheduled for launch this March. MoneyGram stands out as one of the latest global powerhouses committed to managing these nodes as soon as the main network goes live.

While Midnight’s long-term vision is to become a fully decentralized network—where any member can operate a node and participate in staking—the initial launch phase focuses on established entities with global reach and industry expertise. This approach ensures stability and security before control is gradually transitioned to the broader user community.

Strategic Collaboration with Market Leaders

MoneyGram’s involvement brings decades of real-world payment expertise to Midnight’s early infrastructure. As the world’s second-largest money transfer service operating in over 200 countries, MoneyGram is no stranger to the digital asset space, having previously integrated USDC and XLM into its payment ecosystem.

Collaborating with the Midnight Foundation, MoneyGram will explore how regulated payment services can leverage blockchain technology while remaining fully compliant with global regulatory standards. Midnight’s core strength lies in its “on-chain” programmable privacy, a critical feature for financial services that must protect user confidentiality.

Luke Tuttle, Chief Technology Officer at MoneyGram, noted that operating a blockchain node aligns perfectly with the company’s strategy to ensure that privacy, compliance, and reliability are integrated into the system from day one.

Participation of Vodafone and eToro

The network is further strengthened by the arrival of eToro and Pairpoint:

  • eToro: As a pioneer in integrating crypto for mainstream investors, eToro is currently working on the tokenization of US stocks. Omri Ross, Chief Blockchain Officer at eToro, praised Midnight’s approach to balancing data protection with regulatory requirements.
  • Pairpoint (Vodafone & Sumitomo): Through their “Economy of Things” model, Pairpoint utilizes Midnight’s zero-knowledge architecture to provide secure digital identity and device authentication for the global IoT (Internet of Things) ecosystem.

With the previous addition of Google Cloud, Blockdaemon, and AlphaTON Capital, the entry of MoneyGram and these new partners solidifies Midnight Network’s position as it moves toward a stable, compliant, and privacy-focused mainnet operation.