Circle launches USDC stablecoin on Mercado Pago in Chile

Fintech company Circle announced a partnership with Mercado Libre on Aug. 29 to bring the USD Coin stablecoin to Mercado Pago.

1/ The largest fintech in LATAM, @mercadopago, part of Mercado Libre, the Amazon of LATAM with 200M users, is rolling out support for USDC in key markets, starting with Chile. Momentum for USDC and digital dollars building around the world! https://t.co/3mNQxXvNUC

— Jeremy Allaire (@jerallaire) August 29, 2023

Referring to Mercado Libre as “the Amazon of LATAM with 200M users,” Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire posted a thread on X (formerly Twitter) announcing the launch of USD Coin (USDC) on the retail giant’s Mercado Pago online payment platform.

USDC is a stablecoin, meaning it’s pegged to the U.S. dollar. As one of the most widely adopted stablecoins, its launch on the platform in Chile represents further utility for both cryptocurrency and the United States dollar in Chile.

Travel and consumer awareness sites often mention that the U.S. dollar isn’t accepted for payment as often in Chile as it is in many other Latin American countries.

According to Matias Spagui, senior director of Mercado Pago:

“The US dollar is one of the most stable currencies in the world and a simple vehicle to ensure wealth preservation amidst general uncertainty. 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.”

Mercado Libre announced its intent to accept cryptocurrencies as payments back in 2021. In the time since, it’s made strides toward doing so, with the integration of USDC for users in Chile being just the latest example. Earlier this year, the company partnered with Paxos to integrate the Pax Dollar (USDP) stablecoin for users in Mexico as well.

Circle has also made headlines recently with the announcement that Coinbase would take an equity share in Circle upon the dissolution of the Centre governance body. As Cointelegraph reported, the deal gives Circle additional responsibilities as USDC launches on multiple blockchain platforms going forward.

Prior to the realignment, Circle announced that it was preparing for the eventual intrusion of traditional finance and Big Tech giants into the cryptocurrency and stablecoin spaces by gathering resources.

Related: Circle preps $1B war chest to deal with market threats from PayPal and others