In Brief:
- Mercado Libre bought an undisclosed amount of shares in the 2TM group.
- Additionally, the company made a ‘strategic investment’ in Paxos.
- The aim is to boost development and accelerate crypto and blockchain adoption in the region.
E-commerce Giant, Mercado Libre, acquired shares in the 2TM Group, the parent company for Brazil’s largest crypto exchange Mercado Bitcoin in its blockchain-based portfolio, and made a ‘strategic investment’ in Paxos, a leading blockchain infrastructure platform. The investment amount has not yet been disclosed.Â
The aim is to boost development and accelerate the use of crypto assets and blockchain technology in the region. With the investments, Mercado Libre intends to stimulate the regional ecosystem, allowing it to provide relevant services and products to Latin American entrepreneurs and users.
Mercado Bitcoin is Latam’s leading digital assets exchange, and Paxos is a global leader in the crypto space and powers the Mercado Pago cryptocurrency experience in Brazil. In December, Mercado Libre’s financial services unit, Mercado Pago partnered with Paxos to launch a service that enables Brazilians to hold, buy, and sell cryptocurrencies.
Mercado Libre has been closely speculating the evolution of digital assets and blockchain technology around the world. These investments and partnerships are a step ahead to engage in this ever-changing ecosystem.
As a leading technology company, Mercado Libre is actively exploring various opportunities and innovations in the crypto market to emerge as a core participant in this disruption.
Andre Chaves, Senior VP of Strategy and Corporate Development for Mercado Libre, commented on this investment saying that the company’s mission is to open a playing field for all users to achieve economic empowerment.
Aligned with its mission, the company sees these efforts in the crypto space as additional paths to improve the user experience, contributing to financial education and providing access to new opportunities for financial growth, engulfing those who are outside the financial system.
