Tribal partners with Visa to expand credit options for businesses

Crypto-focused enterprise payment platform Tribal Credit has partnered with Visa to expand credit and financing options for small- and medium-sized enterprises across Latin America, highlighting the growing synergies between traditional payment providers and the blockchain industry. 

The partnership with Visa allows Tribal to issue business credit cards in local denominations and currencies across Latin America, including Mexico, Brazil, Colombia, Argentina, Chile, Peru, Panama, Uruguay and the Dominican Republic. A Tribal spokesperson informed Cointelegraph that the company’s initial focus is on providing this credit facility to the countries of Colombia, Peru and Chile.

While the Visa partnership is centered around providing small businesses with traditional financing solutions, Tribal’s technology also allows enterprises to utilize cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology to accept payments and transfer funds. In December 2021, Tribal partnered with Latin American crypto exchange Bitso and the Stellar Development Foundation to create a new enterprise cross-border payment service that utilizes Stellar’s USD stablecoin.

Tribal highlighted El Salvador’s Bitcoin Law and the growing acceptance of cryptocurrencies in Latin America as reasons to continue developing blockchain-based payment solutions.

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Related: Mexican senator to propose crypto law: ‘We need Bitcoin as legal tender’

Visa, too, has broadened its outlook on cryptocurrencies and has even developed a blockchain interoperability project for digital payments. The project, dubbed “Universal Payment Channel,” is researching blockchain interoperability with the aim of streamlining digital asset transfers across chains. In December 2021, the credit card giant announced a new crypto consulting service aimed at helping merchants and banks integrate digital assets into their business models.

Interestingly, Visa has also dabbled in the nonfungible token market after purchasing a CryptoPunk for $150,000 in August 2021. The same month, Visa published a white paper touting NFTs as a “promising medium for fan engagement.”