Latin American countries have emerged at the pinnacle of the crypto revolution, with adoption of digital assets accelerating thanks to the region’s unique socio-economic challenges and its entrepreneurial spirit.
Amid a backdrop of rampant inflation, political troubles and a high percentage of unbanked people, Latin American crypto ecosystems have embraced the opportunity provided by blockchain to transform the way finance works in the region.
It’s no accident that three Latin American nations – Argentina, Brazil and Mexico – achieved a top 20 rank in Chainalysis’ most recent Global Crypto Adoption Index. Crypto adoption in the region is flourishing, with El Salvador notably becoming the first country to make Bitcoin legal tender, and research from Circle finding that more than half of all consumers in the region have made at least one purchase using crypto.
Spurred on by this growing interest in crypto, Latin America has given birth to a number of promising Web3 projects that are developing the tools and infrastructure required to support the mainstream adoption of digital currencies. Let’s take a look at some of them.
Patex
Brazil-based Patex first made its name as one of Latin America’s top cryptocurrency exchanges but has since evolved to become one of its leading blockchain projects, similar to how Binance expanded to create an ecosystem around its Binance Chain.
The Patex Network is a Layer-2 network designed to support the adoption of Central Bank Digital Coins or CDBCs in the Latin American world, and the ecosystem around it consists of an exchange platform, wallet, payments infrastructure, investing tools and educational courses.
Patex Network is a forked version of the Optimism blockchain, and its goal is to support the adoption of CBDCs and other regulated cryptocurrencies. As the company works towards promoting CBDC adoption, it has attracted a lot of capital, including a $10 million investment from Acura Capital. It was also named as the “Best LATAM Blockchain Ecosystem” at the 2023 Future Innovation Summit.
The project emerged from C-Patex, a popular exchange platform that has grown its user base to more than 100,000 and its daily trading volumes to over $10 million. It’s led by Ricardo Da Ros, its CEO, who was previously head of Binance’s operations in Brazil.
To support crypto’s growth in Latin America, Patex has built an educational platform known as Patex Campus, which provides various courses for blockchain developers and users. Other products include the Patex Wallet, which supports instantaneous blockchain payments and provides access to DeFi opportunities, and a blockchain explorer tool.
Patex’s ecosystem is built around the native PATEX token, which has recently secured listings at major centralized and decentralized exchange platforms such as Gate.io, KuCoin, MEXC, PancakeSwap and Uniswap.
AgenteBTC
Founded in Peru in 2019, AgenteBTC is a project that provides access to digital assets and investment opportunities with higher returns, plus payment infrastructure to support low cost remittances. It has installed more than 14,000 physical cash points across Latin America as part of its vision to democratize financial inclusion across the region. It’s doing so in a disruptive fashion that’s customized to support the unique needs of the local population, large parts of which lack both access to traditional banking services and knowledge around saving and building wealth.
AgenteBTC stresses the urgent need for financial inclusion in Latin America. In an interview with Forbes, its Chief Executive Officer Victor Egoavil pointed out that a staggering 70% of Latin America’s population still doesn’t have a bank account. It’s for this reason that more than 58% of point-of-sale transactions in the region are still settled with cash.
AgenteBTC’s focus is on its home nation of Peru, where it aims to establish 15,000 financial centers across the country through its KasNet initiative, which seeks to teach people about cryptocurrencies. Through this effort, AgenteBTC hopes to reach up to 32 million underbanked people.
The project sets itself apart through its meticulous attention to detail, understanding that the needs of Latin Americans are different from consumers elsewhere in the world. To that end, it’s focused on engaging with local communities and immersing itself in their culture in order to make a deeper impact on their lives. “By strategically positioning ourselves at the heart of communities and actively engaging with local culture, we aim to redefine the boundaries of financial accessibility,” Egoavil said.
Lemon Cash
Lemon Cash is an Argentinean crypto startup that has the distinction of being the first to launch a crypto credit card in Latin America. It has partnered with VISA to ensure its Lemon Cash cards can be used across the continent in any store that accepts regular VISA cards. The cards are linked to user’s crypto wallets, and enable them to spend their stablecoins directly for everyday purchases, such as groceries and so on. Users are incentivized to use Lemon Cash cards with 2% cashback in BTC.
In addition to payments, Lemon Cash also supports DeFi features such as borrowing, lending and trading, giving users an opportunity to invest and grow their wealth through crypto.
The project sets itself apart from other payment platforms with its dedication towards user empowerment, with a simple design that makes it more accessible to those who don’t have any experience using traditional banking apps. Its streamlined UI is designed to be as intuitive as possible, allowing anyone to quickly learn how to send and receive digital payments.
The additional capabilities around saving and investing are perhaps the real game-changer in a region where many people have few opportunities to grow their wealth. By combining payments with a basic savings account and investment features, Lemon Cash has emerged as a comprehensive modern finance platform that anyone with a smartphone can access and use.
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