Ran Goldi First Digital ceo
First Digital, an Israeli startup that offers a stablecoin and digital asset payments technology platform, has been acquired by Israeli cryptocurrency security company Fireblocks. While the terms of the deal have not yet been revealed, Globes has cited sources who said that the purchase price was $100 million.
Fireblocks is already an Israeli super unicorn worth more than $8 billion. It hit this mark last month after raising $550 million.
Founded in 2017 by CEO Ran Goldi and Yariv Gilat, First Digital says that it is developing the first global digital payment platform for PSPs and Acquirers. And the company was already working closely with Fireblocks. Ayear ago it partnered with Fireblocks to launch the first Diem payment gateway for financial institutions, allowing merchants to easily connect with the Diem network. First Digital says that its DiemExplorer is an open-source tool for developers that allows anyone to view real-time activity and transaction details on the blockchain.
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Today, we’re welcoming First Digital to the Fireblocks family! 🎉 Integrating @first_dag with our tech stack will enrich our payments capabilities to allow PSPs & acquirers to accept payments & make payouts in crypto. Learn more → https://t.co/IHknj7Gz3J @IdanOfrat @rangoldi pic.twitter.com/qSyrxHNxSm
— Fireblocks (@FireblocksHQ) February 16, 2022
First Digital explains that today over 1.7 billion people remain unbanked globally. That means 31% of the world population has no access to a bank account or proper payment services to exchange money. For too many, today’s financial system works like pre-internet telecom networks.
Fireblocks explained that it would now be embedding First Digital into the Fireblocks tech stack, in order to broaden their support for B2C, B2B, cross-border, and other forms of payment via USDC, Celo, and other stablecoins and cryptocurrencies as early as Spring 2022. “The acquisition of First Digital will significantly expand our payments offering, creating a suite of tools that integrates digital asset treasury operations with day-to-day financial activities,” said the company.
“We’re thrilled to welcome First Digital to the Fireblocks family as we accelerate our expansion plans to help every business become a crypto business. We’re pushing ‘fast forward’ to give PSPs the suite of tools they need to begin accepting crypto payments,” said Michael Shaulov CEO and Co-Founder of Fireblocks.
Ran Goldi said, “It is amazing to see what the entire Fireblocks team has built and accomplished in such a short period of time. This is an exciting opportunity for the First Digital team based on a proven, successful partnership with Fireblocks. We believe that payments should be a core functionality for all fintech apps, and via Fireblocks’ platform, we will make it available to the world at scale.”
