In order to offer the USDC stablecoin to its Chilean customers, financial services provider Circle has launched a new relationship with Mercado Pago, Mercado Libre's digital payments wallet. As a result of the cooperation, millions of users in Chile will have access to USDC through Mercado Pago's services and be able to utilize it as a substitute for dollars in payments and savings.
To provide USDC to Chilean customers, Circle, the financial services business that issued one of the top three stablecoins by market cap, teamed up with Mercado Pago, the digital wallet of Mercado Libre that has been accepting cryptocurrency in various regions. According to a press release, the arrangement will make the USDC stablecoin available to the more than 2 million Mercado Pago customers in Chile so they may use it to make payments and save money.
With regard to the significance of this decision for customers in Chile, Matas Spagui, Senior Director of Mercado Pago, explained 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 declared:
With the introduction of this stablecoin, we hope to expand users' access to cryptocurrencies and provide a dollar-pegged replacement for the more than two million Mercado Pago users.
Adoption of the Latam and Digital Dollar
Latam "will be a major driving force in the adoption of digital dollars," according to Jeremy Allaire, co-founder and CEO of Circle, as the region's features make it amenable to these cutting-edge technology. According to a recent analysis by Circle titled "Latin America Embraces Digital Finance and the Next Internet Era," a large portion of this openness is a result of the region's necessity because many of its residents lack access to analog financial services.
The report's co-author, Rachel Mayer, vice president of product at Circle, commented on how Latin America is leading the way in the adoption of stablecoins, saying that "Latin America is emerging into an epicenter for the digital economy with flourishing innovation and enthusiasm about digital dollars."
Allaire made a suggestion that this collaboration would be extended to further nations when she said that Mercado Pago was "rolling out support for USDC in key markets, starting with Chile." Allaire previously stated that "a lot of that" was driven by emerging nations and that more than 70% of USDC's adoption was non-U.S. based.
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