What Stellar’s Investment In Abra Means For The ‘Robinhood Of Cryptocurrency’

Today, the Stellar Development Foundation, a non-profit organization that supports the development and growth of the Stellar blockchain network announced a $5m investment in Abra, a leading cryptocurrency wallet and exchange application, as part of an overall strategic partnership between the two organizations.

What is notable about this development is that it is a partnership between two organizations that share a deep seated and profound passion around the role that technology can play in increasing worldwide financial inclusion.

Together, the two organizations have the capability to jointly deploy a cheap and easy-to-access alternative financial infrastructure that can offer financial services to those that are unable to access a bank, or live in countries that either have unstable economic environments or authoritarian regimes that restrict their activities.

Abra - The Robinhood Of Cyrptocurrency

Abra was founded by in 2014 in the Silicon Valley by Bill Barhydt, a former software engineer for Goldman Sachs GS  and former director of Netscape.

In 2015, the company, which initially offered a way for people to store and transfer money as easily as sending a text without the need for a bank account, attracted $12M investment in a series A round.

The company grew fast and started to attract attention; in 2018, the Wall Street Journal identified Abra as one of the top 25 technology companies to watch in that coming year.

Since then, the company has completed a series B and C round, filling its coffers with over $47m of funding which it has used to develop its service. Today Abra offers a smartphone accessible investment platform and wallet that provides the ability for customers across the world to invest in 100 cryptocurrencies and 65 fiat currencies.

Abra has solved a major challenge in the adoption of cryptocurrency ...