ICE in Talks to Back MoonPay in Deal Valuing Crypto Payments Firm at $5B
Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), the parent company of the New York Stock Exchange, is in talks to invest in crypto payments firm MoonPay as part of the company’s latest funding round, according to Bloomberg.
MoonPay is reportedly seeking to raise capital at a valuation of around $5 billion. Bloomberg, citing people familiar with the matter, said the potential size of ICE’s investment has not been disclosed and that no deal has been finalized.
If completed, the investment would add MoonPay to a list of increasingly prominent crypto-related bets by ICE, reflecting a strategic shift toward blockchain-based financial services and alternative market infrastructure.
ICE’s Expanding Crypto Footprint
The reported MoonPay talks come just months after ICE made a major move into crypto-adjacent markets.
In October, the exchange operator invested $2 billion in prediction platform Polymarket, a funding round that valued the company at $9 billion. This deal marked one of the largest single investments by a traditional market operator into a crypto-linked platform to date.
Together, the Polymarket investment and the MoonPay discussions signal ICE’s interest in gaining exposure across multiple layers of the crypto economy — from market infrastructure and data-driven platforms to payments and access rails that connect users to digital assets.
MoonPay’s Role as Crypto Infrastructure Provider
Founded in 2019, MoonPay has grown into one of the most widely used fiat on-ramp and off-ramp providers in the crypto industry.
The company allows users to buy and sell cryptocurrencies using traditional payment methods such as debit and credit cards, while also offering embedded crypto payment services to wallets, exchanges, nonfungible token platforms and enterprises.
Rather than operating primarily as a consumer brand, MoonPay often functions as behind-the-scenes infrastructure, enabling crypto transactions within third-party applications. This positioning has made it a critical gateway between the traditional financial system and onchain activity, particularly as regulators scrutinize how users access digital assets.
An investment from ICE would further cement MoonPay’s role as a bridge between regulated financial markets and blockchain-based ecosystems.
Wall Street and Crypto Continue to Converge
The potential MoonPay deal reflects a broader trend of convergence between Wall Street and the crypto sector, as established financial institutions increasingly experiment with blockchain technology.
In March, stablecoin issuer Circle said it had begun exploring possible integrations with ICE’s clearing and data services.
The products under consideration include Circle’s dollar-pegged USDC stablecoin and its US Yield Coin (USYC), a tokenized money market fund backed by short-term U.S. Treasurys.
Those initiatives point to growing interest among market infrastructure providers in using blockchain-based tokens to streamline settlement and collateral processes.
Regulatory Progress Fuels Tokenization Push
Momentum has also been building on the regulatory front.
In December, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission approved plans for the Depository Trust and Clearing Corporation (DTCC) to begin offering tokenized bonds and stocks, a move widely viewed as a milestone for institutional blockchain adoption.
DTCC, which handled approximately $3.7 quadrillion in settlement volume in 2024, is considered the backbone of the traditional financial system. Its infrastructure clears transactions across equities, bonds, fixed income products and derivatives markets.
The clearinghouse is expected to launch its tokenized trading services in the second half of 2026 and will mint certain U.S. Treasury securities onchain using the Canton Network, a permissioned blockchain designed specifically for financial institutions.
Payments and Access Become Strategic Focus
As real-world asset tokenization gains traction, attention is increasingly shifting toward the payments and access layers that allow users and institutions to interact with onchain assets. By exploring an investment in MoonPay, ICE appears to be positioning itself not just around tokenized securities, but also around the infrastructure that enables fiat-to-crypto flows at scale.
While it remains unclear whether the MoonPay talks will result in a finalized deal, the discussions highlight a clear direction of travel. Major exchange operators and clearinghouses are no longer standing on the sidelines of crypto, but are actively investing in the companies shaping how digital assets are bought, sold and settled — further blurring the lines between traditional finance and blockchain-based markets.
