Stablecoin MELI arrives in Brazil through Mercado Livre

Mercado Pago, the digital bank owned by Argentine giant Mercado Libre, has launched a new stablecoin called MELI Dollar in Brazil. This is a US dollar-denominated stablecoin that is set to reinforce the list of stablecoins available in Brazil.

With this, the company aims to give Brazilians another option, as well as expand the use of its services in the largest economy in Latin America.

Dollar in Brazil

The company stated that, through the Mercado Pago app, users in Brazil can buy and sell MELI Dollars. According to the company, all they have to do is deposit reais into their Mercado Pago account and then exchange them for dollars.

Users of the digital account will not have any transaction costs, only the taxes due. With the stablecoin, the company’s customers will be able to make remittances abroad or make international purchases. Through a partnership with the Argentine exchange Ripio, Mercado Pago guarantees the stability of the Meli Dollar.

Ripio acts as a market maker for transactions that occur through the Mercado Pago app. In this way, the company ensures the smooth and secure completion of transactions for customers. The stablecoin is issued by Meli Uruguay SRL, a subsidiary of Mercado Libre, which also provides the currency with backing.

Mercado Libre brings continuous innovations

Mercado Libre has been slowly expanding its activities in the cryptocurrency market in recent years. Among the company’s main initiatives is Mercado Coin in 2022, a cryptocurrency used to make purchases. This token also offers cashback to customers who use it as a means of payment on the platform.

Additionally, Mercado Livre has integrated Paxos blockchain technology into Mercado Pago, allowing users in Brazil to trade BTC, ETH and the USDP stablecoin.

According to André Chaves, Mercado Pago’s senior vice president, the company’s mission is to expand access to cryptocurrencies and promote innovation in the financial sector. In addition, the company also wants to take advantage of the growth of stablecoins, which have received more than US$2.21 billion in just over 10 days.

Much of this growth came from Tether, the issuer of the USDT stablecoin, which increased the supply by $1.26 billion. As of now, the market cap of stablecoins is $168.42 billion, of which USDT accounts for 69.4% of the market.

Even in Latin America, the company leads the ranking of USDT trading, but the strong growth of this market indicates that there is room for new competitors.

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