Ripple Expands Latin American Reach With Payments Launch in Brazil via Mercado Bitcoin

Fintech giant Ripple announced Thursday that it is launching its high-speed payment solution, Ripple Payments, in Brazil as it aims to broaden its reach across South America.

Brazilian crypto exchange Mercado Bitcoin will be the first to use Ripple’s blockchain payments solution in a bid to speed up cross-border transactions. Other businesses will be allowed to tap the technology sometime in the future, according to a statement. 

Formerly known as RippleNet, Ripple Payments is the fintech’s blockchain-powered solution for cross-border payments. It offers businesses and financial institutions a faster and cheaper way to send and receive international payments by leveraging Ripple’s blockchain infrastructure.

Its solution runs atop the XRP Ledger to provide liquidity and settlement, although the system doesn’t require users to hold or use crypto.

Its payment rails will give businesses on-demand liquidity across multiple currencies at any time to ensure “efficient and timely transactions regardless of the destination or time zone,” Ripple said in its statement.

Jordan Abud, Mercado Bitcoin’s head of banking, said the move would provide a “simplified transfer” process by leveraging the expertise of Ripple.

Ripple is a fintech company that focuses on moving money around the globe quickly. Its founders also created XRP, the seventh-biggest cryptocurrency by market capitalization.

Since the company scored a partial win against the Securities and Exchange Commission last year, which was widely seen as a win by the digital asset industry, it has expressed hope that more companies would use its payment solutions. 

Its announcement on Thursday isn’t the fintech's first foray into Latin America. Last year, the company signed a deal with Colombia’s central bank to explore central bank digital currency technology. Ripple already has an office in Brazil, which opened in 2019. 

The region has emerged as a “critical hub” for crypto innovation due to its high adoption rates and “growing financial inclusion needs,” a Ripple spokesperson told Decrypt.  

“Brazil, in particular, is a leading market for crypto because of its forward-thinking approach to policy, buy-in from traditional financial institutions,” they said.  

The largest economy in South America also possesses a “growing developer community,” hungry for the opportunity to improve existing financial infrastructure. They added that it’s also a “key foothold” into the region.

Edited by Sebastian Sinclair