James Cirrone

Latin American digital payment platform Mercado Pago is now offering USDC payments for customers in Chile, Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire announced Tuesday on X, formerly Twitter.



Allaire called Mercado Libre, the e-commerce firm that runs Mercado Pago, the Amazon of Latin America.&nbsp;



In a more detailed <a href="https://www.circle.com/blog/circle-teams-up-with-mercado-pago-to-introduce-usdc-to-chile-customers">blog post</a>, senior director of Mercado Pago Matías Spagui lauded this integration as a way for millions of people in Chile to access its stablecoin.



“With the launch of this stablecoin we seek to diversify access to cryptocurrencies and offer the more than two million Mercado Pago users an alternative that matches the value of the dollar,” Spagui said in a statement.



Allaire mentioned that this move into Chile essentially capitalizes on what the company already knows about its customers and the stablecoin business in general.



The majority of stablecoin activity — specifically <a href="https://blockworks.co/price/usdc">USDC</a> transactions — happens outside the US, where the US dollar makes up for around 96% of trade invoicing, <a href="https://www.federalreserve.gov/econres/notes/feds-notes/the-international-role-of-the-u-s-dollar-20211006.html">according</a> to the Federal Reserve.



“We recently shared that ~70% of USDC adoption was non-US, and a lot of that is driven by emerging markets. Latin American [fintechs] will be a major driving force in the adoption of digital dollars,” Allaire <a href="https://twitter.com/jerallaire/status/1696526108261597499">posted</a> on X.&nbsp;



Mercado Libre, the firm <a href="https://blockworks.co/tag/circle">Circle</a> is partnering with to get more widespread USDC access to Chilean citizens, hasn’t been shy in the crypto space.&nbsp;



The company <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/mercado-libre-broadens-crypto-offerings-in-brazil">launched Ethereum-based token MercadoCoin in Brazil last August</a> as an alternate means to earn cashback on purchases made through its e-commerce platform.



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Mercado Libre, Circle expand into Chile with USDC

Sebastian Sinclair

<div id="highlights-block_62ff32f9917b7" class="highlights">
 <ul>
 <li>Mercado Libre’s MercadoCoin is available to 500,000 users, with a further 80 million expected by month’s end</li>
 <li>The token lets users earn crypto rewards as cashback on purchases and pay for goods on Mercado’s e-commerce platform</li>
 </ul>
 
</div>



Latin American e-commerce company Mercado Libre has launched a token in Brazil, aimed at generating crypto cashback rewards on purchases, as well as the ability to pay for goods on its platform.



Dubbed MercadoCoin, the Ethereum-based token is tradable via the company’s digital payments platform, Mercado Pago. The endeavor is part of its loyalty program, designed to attract and retain customers.



<a href="https://www.reuters.com/technology/mercadolibre-create-cryptocurrency-part-loyalty-program-2022-08-18/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Reuters</a> first reported the news on Thursday, citing a press conference. Blockworks attempted to contact Mercado but did not immediately receive a response.



Mercado’s crypto pursuits can be viewed as a savvy play on the region’s <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/74-of-latin-americans-prefer-businesses-that-accept-crypto-report/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">high adoption rates of digital assets</a>. Latin America has continued to capture between 8% and 10% of global cryptocurrency activity, according to Chainalysis’ research, <a href="https://www.americasquarterly.org/article/is-crypto-the-path-to-financial-inclusion-in-latin-america/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">reported</a> in March.



Emerging markets face considerable currency devaluation resulting from high rates of inflation, driving locals to purchase crypto on P2P platforms in a bid to <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/employees-want-to-be-paid-in-crypto-report-shows/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">preserve their savings</a>.



While crypto valuations have been impacted by the recent market rout spurred on by overleveraged lenders and a swing to bearish sentiment, the nascent asset class’s popularity in the region <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/survey-more-than-half-of-latin-americans-have-paid-with-crypto/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">remains high</a>.



The e-commerce giant began offering users access to bitcoin, ether and Paxos’ stablecoin PAX in December of last year after it partnered with the crypto service provider. Mercado also purchased a stake for an <a href="https://investor.mercadolibre.com/news-releases/news-release-details/mercado-libre-announces-investments-mercado-bitcoin-and-paxos" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">undisclosed sum</a> in crypto exchange MercadoBitcoin.com.br’s parent holding company 2TM and Paxos as a shareholder in January.



MercadoCoin is expected to be valued at $0.10 before being floated on the open market, Reuters reported. The crypto is available to 500,000 customers in Brazil, where it is anticipated to reach more than 80 million people by the end of the month.



The company also said the token will only be available to Brazilian nationals, with no timeframe given on an expansion to other Latin American countries. Despite using the ERC-20 token standard, trading will be limited to its Mercado Pago platform until further notice, Reuters reported.



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Start your day with top crypto insights from David Canellis and Katherine Ross. <a href="https://blockworks.co/newsletter/empire">Subscribe to the Empire newsletter</a>.



Explore the growing intersection between crypto, macroeconomics, policy and finance with Ben Strack, Casey Wagner and Felix Jauvin. <a href="https://blockworks.co/newsletter/onthemargin">Subscribe to the Forward Guidance newsletter</a>.



Get alpha directly in your inbox with the <a href="https://blockworks.co/newsletter/research">0xResearch newsletter</a> — market highlights, charts, degen trade ideas, governance updates, and more.



The Lightspeed newsletter is all things Solana, in your inbox, every day. <a href="https://blockworks.co/newsletter/lightspeed">Subscribe to daily Solana news</a> from Jack Kubinec and Jeff Albus.