Circle, a financial services company, has announced a new partnership with Mercado Pago, Mercado Libre’s digital payments wallet, to bring the USDC stablecoin to its Chilean customers. The partnership will allow millions of users in Chile to access USDC via Mercado Pago’s services and leverage it as a digital representation of the U.S. dollar for payments and savings.
Circle to Enter Chile and Latam via Mercado Pago
Circle, the financial services company behind the issuance of USDC, one of the top three stablecoins by market cap, has partnered with Mercado Pago, the digital payments wallet of Mercado Libre that has been including cryptocurrency in some markets, to introduce USDC to Chilean customers. According to a press release, the agreement will allow the more than 2 million Mercado Pago users in Chile to access the USDC stablecoin and leverage it for payment and saving purposes.
Matías Spagui, Senior Director of Mercado Pago, commented on the relevance of this move for Chilean users, detailing that the “U.S. dollar is one of the most stable currencies in the world and a simple vehicle to ensure wealth preservation amidst general uncertainty.” He stated:
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.
Latam and Digital Dollar Adoption
Jeremy Allaire, co-founder and CEO of Circle, believes Latam “will be a major driving force in the adoption of digital dollars,” as the region’s characteristics make it receptive to these new technologies. In a recent report titled “Latin America Embraces Digital Finance and the Next Internet Era,” Circle details that part of this receptivity is a product of Latam’s necessity, as many populations within the region lack access to analog financial services.
Rachel Mayer, VP of Product at Circle, who co-authored the report, shared his thoughts about how Latam is at the forefront of the stablecoin adoption, stating that “Latin America is emerging into an epicenter for the digital economy with flourishing innovation and enthusiasm about digital dollars.”
Allaire hinted at the possibility of expanding this partnership to more countries, stating that Mercado Pago was “rolling out support for USDC in key markets, starting with Chile.” Allaire declared before that more than 70% of USDC’s adoption was non-U.S. based and that “a lot of that” was driven by emerging markets.
What do you think about the partnership between Circle and Mercado Pago to introduce USDC to Chilean customers? Tell us in the comments section below.