Ripple partners with Mercado Bitcoin to allow cross border payments in Brazil using crypto

Ripple, a digital assets infrastructure provider, announced the launch of Ripple Payments in Brazil in partnership with Latin America’s leading crypto exchange, Mercado Bitcoin. The end-to-end payment solution would enable customers to leverage blockchain technology for faster, safer, cheaper, and more efficient cross-border payments in minutes. 

Mercado Bitcoin is among the largest crypto exchanges in Latin America. Their partnership with Ripple will first focus on the internal operation between Portugal and Brazil, as mentioned in the announcement. Furthermore, the expansion of the service to international payments for retail customers and the corporate sector is also planned.

According to Ripple, the payment solution was building upon a new feature that debuted in 2023 to enable Ripple to manage end-to-end payments on its customers’ behalf. Mercado Bitcoin was expected to use Ripple Payments to improve its coordinated treasury operations between Portugal and Brazil. The statement revealed that the plan was to improve customer experience by allowing non-resident accounts and direct payments in Reais for retail and corporate customers.

Additional reporting by Noor Bazmi.