Tag: Brazil

Brazil and Argentina explore a common currency

by Blockchain News

The CEO of Coinbase, Brian Armstrong, suggested that Brazil and Argentina should switch to Bitcoin (BTC) as their national currency as Brazil and Argentina were beginning preparatory work for a potential common currency. This sparked a variety of discussions over the viability of Bitcoin (BTC) as a national currency. The Argentine peso and the Brazilian real will continue to be legal tender in both countries until a single currency can be established between them. The two nations in South America made the announcement on January 22 that they are beginning to plan for the creation of a joint currency.

The action may result in the formation of the world’s second-largest currency bloc.

Armstrong immediately rushed to Twitter when the news emerged to propose that Bitcoin would be the “perfect long-term bet” and to query whether or not the two governments would take it into consideration.

Raoul Pal, founder and current CEO of Global Macro Investor, was against the plan.

According to Pal, it is not optimal to have a national currency that “down 65% during the weak portion of the economic cycle and appreciates 10 times during the strong half of the cycle.”

The CEO pointed out that firms would have trouble preparing and hedging in this case because of the current climate. There were just a few others in the town who shared Pal’s opinion.

One person on Twitter claims that the only viable use for bitcoin is as a store of wealth, comparable to gold.

They posted the following on their Twitter account: Meanwhile, another Twitter user brought up the poor pace of transactions on the Bitcoin network and complained that they would take too long for everyday usage.

However, this was swiftly refuted by another community member who asserted that Bitcoin would become the “best means of trade” after the Lightning Network is completed. Armstrong’s statement may have been motivated by the fact that El Salvador, another Latin American nation, acknowledged bitcoin as a form of legal money in the year 2021.

The action resulted in several positive outcomes for the nation, one of which being an increase in tourism the next year, which totaled 1.1 million visitors to the nation.

In addition, El Salvador was able to use the revenues from its Bitcoin purchases to fund the construction of schools as well as a veterinary hospital.

Brazil and Argentina are no strangers to digital assets.

On November 29, the Chamber of Deputies in Brazil passed a bill that makes it possible to use cryptocurrencies as a form of payment in the nation.

Although the new legislation acknowledges cryptocurrency as a mode of payment, it does not make any particular cryptocurrency legal tender inside the nation.

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Authorities in the U.S and Brazil Disrupt Crypto Fraud Ring

by Blockchain News

There seems to be a surge in crime related to cryptocurrency as blockchain technology keeps expanding. 

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The United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement recently reported an investigation by the Brazilian National Police, U.S. Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and other law enforcement agencies that led to the disruption of crypto-related fraud across several countries but with operational base in Curitiba, Brazil.

A U.S investigation has revealed that 37-year-old Brazilian citizen and former US resident Francisley Valdevino da Silva is the ringleader of a crypto fraud ring. Investors in more than a dozen countries were tricked into believing that there was a well-organized high-end crypto-financial product, when in fact the organization promoted fraudulent cooperation and licensing that enticed victims to invest millions of dollars in questionable cryptos. Ultimately, the cryptocurrency had little or no value.

The Brazilian authorities have also identified a similar fraudulent activity in Brazil with around $800 million wired through the Brazilian banking system alone aside from illegal proceeds transferred through cryptocurrency.

Governments Regulating Crypto-Related Crimes

The increase in online activities has created an opportunity for the growth of criminal activities in the digital ecosystem. Measures have therefore been put in place by different governments across the globe to fight such activities.

The U.S Department of Homeland Security hopes to put an end to the increasing cases of money laundering by creating a special unit called the Cyber Fraud Task Force ( CFTF). To effectively monitor and stop illegal online activity, CFTF investigators must be able to analyze a computer network, monitor IP addresses, and coordinate with Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to identify suspicious activity.

The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) has also proposed methods for businesses operating in the crypto space, particularly exchanges. In the proposal, unhosted wallets properly monitored and transactions above $3,000 from unhosted wallets should be verified before concluding transactions with them.

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Brazil’s Securities Market Regulator Targets Mercado Bitcoin over Token Sale

by Blockchain News

The Brazilian Securities and Exchange Commission (CVM), the securities market regulator in Brazil, has ordered Mercado Bitcoin, the largest cryptocurrency exchange in Brazil, to provide information on fixed-income tokens the exchange has issued over the last two years.

According to reports by Estadão newspaper, the capital markets regulator wants to know the amount Mercado Bitcoin raised with the tokens and see a list of investors who participated.

While the report did not reveal the names of the tokens, it confirmed that they were issued on a blockchain and allegedly backed by real-world assets. The report further said the tokens were “low risk and high yield” in “consortium, energy, writs of payments and receivables.”

Mercado Bitcoin has responded to the matter, saying that its token sales fully complied with Brazil’s regulatory framework. The exchange further said it “actively” works with the securities market regulator and Brazil’s central bank to “contribute to the construction of regulations for the sector.”

“We do not make public offerings of securities outside the scope of the authorizations we hold as an authorized crowdfunding platform and investment manager,” Mercado said.

In early this month, the CVM banned the Singapore-based crypto exchange Bybit from brokering securities in the country. On September 5, Bybit was booted out of the Brazilian market over its alleged unregistered securities offering. The country’s securities watchdog ordered the Singaporean exchange to cease operations immediately or face a daily fine.

The CVM alleged that Bybit was seeking to raise funds from Brazilian investors for investments in securities without the company having the authorization to act as a securities intermediary. The regulator argued that only Brazil’s stock exchange B3 is allowed to offer securities in the country.

This month, 2TM Group, Mercado Bitcoin’s parent company, criticized Brazilian regulators for not being clear about regulating cryptocurrency. The company said the current environment in Brazil is unfair and has not yet developed a clear regulatory framework for crypto-activities.

Meanwhile, reports indicate that the CVM is preparing to release an official crypto guide soon but encourages companies to consult the commission before issuing any token that may be considered a security.

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Brazil Securities and Exchange Commission Bars Bybit Offering Crypto Trading

by Blockchain News

Brazilian Securities and Exchange Commission (CVM) ordered Monday the ban on cryptocurrency exchange Bybit from engaging in the securities brokerage business.

In a statement released on Monday, the CVM ordered the suspension of ByBit’s “public offering of any securities intermediary services, directly or indirectly, to Brazilian users, including through the use of websites, applications or social networks.”

According to CVM, ByBit is seeking to raise funds for securities investments from investors residing in Brazil, and the company is not authorized to act as a securities intermediary.

Bybit has become one of the most stable crypto trading platforms in Europe and Asia. With an estimated 6 million daily active users (dau) and $10 billion in trading volume, the exchange said it has built the necessary liquidity for the Brazilian cryptocurrency market.

However, the Brazilian government said that only the Brazilian stock exchange B3 can provide securities trading, and ByBit is not eligible.

The Brazilian government said breaking the ban could result in a fine of 1,000 Brazilian reals (equivalent to $194) per day.

On July 6, the Brazilian Securities and Exchange Commission ordered cryptocurrency trading platform Binance to immediately stop derivatives trading services in Brazil. Brazilian law treats all derivatives as securities.

Recently, Brazilian esports team MIBR announced a partnership and sponsorship deal with crypto exchange Bybit for the next three years.

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Brazilian SEC Seeks Adjustment to Crypto Regulation

by Blockchain News

The Brazilian Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), also known as CVM, is pushing for adjustments to the legal framework of the crypto market in the country.

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According to local news, there is a disagreement about what digital assets are securities and those that are not. Also, whether or not these digital assets fall into the jurisdiction of the Brazilian SEC or not. 

These discussions are allegedly arising due to the new management team that was inaugurated recently. In addition, Brazil has a major scepticism concerning the effect and applicability of cryptocurrencies on the country’s financial system.

Previously, the Brazil SEC showed no interest whatsoever in taking a key stance in regulating the crypto industry. In fact, they had stood in resistance to supervising the activities of the crypto ecosystem. In their defence, the Brazilian SEC claims not to have the necessary resources and or the equipped team to take on such tasks.

Revived Interest in the Crypto Market

Currently, the interest of the regulator has spiked and is now planning to improve the regulatory framework of the space. Part of its proposals is to work on the description of digital assets to effectively define what qualifies as securities and otherwise.

In the newly presented Brazil SEC adjusted bill proposal, it was discovered that consideration was not given to tokens as digital assets, nor was it regarded as securities. 

If that is the case, it means that these tokens do not fall under the jurisdiction of SEC’s regulation. So far, only non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC) have been globally certified as non-security assets. Others are still stuck in between decisions as to whether they are securities or not. 

No alteration can be made to the bill until it gets to the President, Jair Bolsonaro, to be signed into law. Likewise, the president is responsible for defining the roles to be played by both the Central Bank of Brazil and the SEC. The senate’s economic affairs committee approved a bill earlier this year highlighting the ground rules and day-to-day usage of digital currency funds.

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Brazilian Crypto Firm 2TM Announces Second Round of 15% Layoffs

by Blockchain News

2TM – the Brazilian startup that owns the Mercado Bitcoin cryptocurrency exchange – announced Thursday that it will lay off 15% of its workforce, or about 100 employees.

This is the second round of layoffs at 2TM as the company had already laid off more than 80 jobs in June as part of a cost-cutting plan due to intensive bearish market fears.

2TM Group is the parent company of MercadoBitcoin.com.br, one of the most prominent digital currency exchanges in Brazil.

2TM wrote in its official announcement:

“The competitive environment remains deteriorated and unfair, lacking the approval of the legal framework for crypto-activities, as players following the law are penalized by companies that ignore local rules.”

2TM is valued at $2.1 billion following $200 million it raised in a Series B funding round and $50 million in a second closing of the funding last November. The startup also received a liquidity injection from Mercado Libre earlier in January alongside Paxos as reported by Blockchain.News.

Other crypto-related companies in Latin America have also announced layoffs as the crypto-economic adversity continues.

South American trading platform Bitso announced the decision by laying off 80 employees for maintaining its long-term business strategy.

UAE-based cryptocurrency exchange BitOasis has announced that it has cut 5% of its workforce as part of a cost-cutting plan.

Coinbase announced an 18% layoff, meaning the company laid off about 1,100 full-time employees. Crypto companies like BlockFi, Robinhood, and Crypto.com have also recently announced massive layoffs.

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Brazil’s Digitra.com Launches Crypto Platform Using Nasdaq’s Cloud-Based Tech

by Blockchain News

Brazil-based cryptocurrency exchange Digitra.com on Tuesday launched a digital asset trading platform powered by Nasdaq’s cloud-based crypto trading service.

Built on market infrastructure technology from Nasdaq, Digitra.com now uses exchange-grade matching technology to provide 24/7/365 robust and frictionless trading services on Digitra.com for retail and institutional investors worldwide.

Launched in June 2020, Nasdaq’s Marketplace Services Platform is a cloud-based SaaS platform that supports digital assets exchanges and crypto markets for exchanging digital assets, offering services across the lifecycle of a transaction including trading, issuance, surveillance, and pre-trade risk management.

While Nasdaq is offering digital asset services, it is collaborating with Microsoft Azure on designing solutions for next-generation marketplaces.

The Nasdaq’s cloud-based platform allows exchanges to attract liquidity and scale transaction volumes to correspond with different market conditions. The technology also enables exchanges to develop new features for their clients.

Digitra.com founder and CEO Rodrigo Batista talked about the development: “Nasdaq brings extensive experience and expertise in capital markets technology to Digitra.com and our industry. Our technology collaboration gives us a robust foundation to grow and build new features for our clients.”

One feature that Digitra.com is already leveraging from Nasdaq’s Marketplace Services Platform is a new commission and fee structure, called Trade to Earn. Through the newly created structure, Digitra.com has eliminated transaction fees while introducing a monetary incentive program that awards customers with native Digitra tokens (DGTA) on every executed trade.

Although Digitra.com already provides digital assets such as bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH), and USD coin (USDC) to its customers, the exchange said it plans to use the Nasdaq’s technology to offer 50 additional asset classes and coins by the end of the year.

 “By offering additional services on top of cryptocurrency spot trading, we will create new revenue streams that replace the traditional transaction fees,” Batista said.

Nasdaq’s cloud-based Marketplace Services Platform is designed to dynamically scale as the marketplace grows and adds new asset classes to its trading platform.

Nasdaq’s Marketplace Services Platform will enable Digitra.com to grow and scale, which is crucial as the exchange continues expanding and offering new asset types.

Digitra.com will be able to introduce new products rapidly – from cryptocurrencies and stablecoins to security, energy, and carbon credit tokens – as such opportunities arise.

By using Nasdaq technology, Digitra.com said it will be able to respond to the demands of the market and offer new types of services and products that don’t exist today.

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Ripple Launches Crypto On-Demand Liquidity Service in Brazil

by Blockchain News

Ripple, a US-based leading provider of crypto solutions for businesses, announced on Thursday the launch of its crypto on-demand liquidity (ODL) in Brazil.

According to the statement, Travelex Bank will become the first Brazilian financial institution to use the ODL to boost its trading activities.

Ripple’s ODL solution uses XRP, a digital asset ideal for payments, to allow clients to send money across borders instantly with a very low-cost settlement between countries and without the need to hold pre-funded capital in the destination market.

Travelex Bank was seeking to provide a better customer experience to its partners, who have limited capital to cover the costs of pre-funding, which was causing hindrances to their growth.

Travelex will use ODL to deliver instant settlement and access to liquidity 24/7/365, allowing its partners to grow better and scale their business.

Travelex will initially use ODL to support payments between Mexico and Brazil, with plans to support more international destinations as well as more use cases such as internal treasury and bulk small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) payments in the future.

Brad Garlinghouse, CEO of Ripple, talked about the development: “Brazil is a key market for Ripple given its importance as an anchor to business in Latin America. We are excited to collaborate with an innovative partner like Travelex Bank to help move money more efficiently for the benefit of its customers across Brazil.”

Continues to Conquer Banking Sector

Travelex joins other Ripple customers and partners in the region, including Banco Rendimento, Remessa Online, Frente Corretora, Banco Topazio, and B&T Câmbio already benefiting from RippleNet cloud technology.

In 2019, Ripple opened its local office in Sao Paulo, Brazil, to set foot in Latin America and expand its footprint in the region.

In June 2020, Banco Rendimento acquired RippleNet Cloud services to increase payment volumes and to provide clients with greater visibility, transparency, and standardization in their balances.

Rendimento Bank joined many other financial institutions already running on the RippleNet Cloud.

Financial institutions and banks use the RippleNet cloud to maximize their business benefits with increased speed of innovation and time-to-market while reducing the total cost of ownership.

RippleNet cloud enables the ability to send and receive payments between financial institutions on RippleNet, the global network of Ripple’s blockchain payments.

Ripple and XRP enjoy the trust of several banks as a model for CBDCs because it is highly centralized and is based on a permissioned network where only certain network nodes can validate transactions, as opposed to permissionless and decentralized cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ether.

Garlinghouse’s firm previously looked to partner with Brazil for the CBDC (Central Bank Digital Currency) issuance.

In August 2020, the Banco Central do Brasil (BCB) – Brazil’s central bank – launched a working group for the development of its digital currency two months after holding a meeting with Ripple Labs.

In November last year, Palau – the pacific island country – partnered with Ripple Labs Inc. to explore the development of its national digital currency.

In March last year, France’s central bank, Banque de France, openly discussed Ripple/XRP as a possible platform for Europe’s central digital currency.

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Brazil’s Bank BTG Pactual Launches Crypto Trading Platform

by Blockchain News

BTG Pactual, Brazil’s sixth largest investment bank, has launched its cryptocurrency trading platform.

André Portilho, head of digital assets at BTG Pactual, confirmed that the crypto trading platform, called Mynt, is now officially available to the public.

“Cryptocurrencies are a new technology with great potential for transformation, bringing with it risks and opportunities. Entering the cryptocurrency universe is another important step in meeting a demand from our clients and filling a gap in the market,” the executive said.

The platform currently supports trading five digital assets, including Bitcoin, Ether, Solana, Polkadot, and Cardano.

Mynt allows users to invest in cryptocurrencies with as little as 100 Brazilian reals, equivalent to $19.42.

Portilho said Mynt offers 24/7 support from a team available throughout to answer any customer questions.

Portilho noted that the platform had been available to a restricted group since May. In September last year, BTG Pactual first announced the idea of Mynt with initial plans to offer Bitcoin and Ether trading by the end of that year.

Crypto creating new business opportunities

Crypto is fast gaining mainstream acceptance in Brazil as major firms are creating new and innovative offerings around such digital assets.

Major Brazilian businesses are increasingly allowing consumers to get started with cryptocurrency quickly and easily to diversify their savings, protect against inflation, and save on transaction fees.

In July, Santander, a Spanish banking multinational giant whose branch operates in Brazil, announced plans to offer crypto trading to its customers in Brazil.

In May, Nubank, the largest Brazilian digital bank by market value, launched Bitcoin and Ether trading to allow its customers to buy cryptocurrencies on its platform.

Last month, PicPay, a major Brazilian payment app, launched a crypto exchange through a partnership with Paxos to enable users to trade cryptocurrencies.

In December last year, Mercado Libre, Latin America’s largest e-commerce company by market value, began allowing users in Brazil to buy, sell and hold crypto coins.

And many more big brands in Brazil have launched crypto trading services. The cryptocurrency market in the country is expected to grow significantly as demand remains high.

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Brazil’s Digital Banking Platform Nu Holdings Adds 5.7m new customers in Q2

by Blockchain News

Fintech unicorn Nu Holdings has added 5.7 million new customers in the second quarter of 2022.

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The Brazilian digital banking platform now has 65.3 million people and businesses using its services.

Nu has achieved a growth in customers by 57% year-over-year in the second quarter – an upward trend from about 41.7 million in June 2021 – the company disclosed in a second-quarter earnings release ahead of a conference call on Monday. 

“We had another very strong quarter, with growth and profitability in our core business. We registered record revenues and are making huge strides towards becoming a multi-product and multi-country platform,” David Vélez, founder and CEO, said.

According to its published financial report, the latest growth mainly comes from its core products, including credit cards and personal loans – which reached 29 million and 4 million active customers, respectively, pushing the company as the fifth largest financial institution in Brazil in terms of numbers of customers.

The growth also contributed to the company earning a new record high of $1,2 billion in Q2, increasing 230% YoY, according to the statement.

In July, when the digital banking company entered the crypto market by launching the Nucripto platform, it added 1 million users within three weeks of its launch.

According to a late July report from Blockchain.News, the firm had projected to reach the milestone within a year after launching Nucripto in May and making it available to the crypto trading service to 46.5 million users in June.

On May 11, 2022, Nubank launched an initial rollout of Nucripto, which allows cryptocurrency trading starting from R$1 (US$0.19). The firm aims to democratize crypto in Brazil and in the rest of Latin America, the report added.

Nucripto was introduced to eliminate the complexity of the crypto market and to make it accessible to anyone who wants to be part of it, according to Nubank.

The Nucripto platform allows users to sell and buy Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) through a crypto-trading and custody service powered by Paxos’ blockchain infrastructure.

In May, Nubank allocated roughly 1% of the cash on its balance sheet to Bitcoin to demonstrate its belief in crypto.

Nu said that 52.3 million or 80% of its total customers are active. According to the company, the total consists of about 63.3 million consumers and 2 million small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

Currently, Nu’s biggest market is Brazil, and its customers grew 51% year-over-year in the second quarter to 62.3 million.

Besides Brazil, the company aims to expand into neighbouring Mexico and Colombia, with around 2.7 million and 314,000 customers, respectively. The company said in the earnings report that it has added almost 700,000 customers in those countries during the quarter.

“Our largest operation -Brazil- is now profitable, having registered a net profit of US$ 13 million in the first half of 2022, driven by customer growth to 65 million and the ability to offer and cross-sell new products. Moving internationally, we are now the #1 issuer of new credit cards in both Mexico and Colombia –where we have just received a license approval to continue our expansion,” Vélez said.

The Block reported that the banking company’s revenues jumped 230% in the second quarter to $1.2 billion on a foreign exchange-neutral basis. 

In terms of net loss, the company witnessed $29.9 million growth in the second quarter. While it had seen $15.2 million in the same three months of 2021.

The company stated that this net loss result was due to “higher share-based compensation and related tax effects in the quarter.”

However, the company’s core products reached 29 million, 45 million and 4 million active customers, respectively, in quarter two of 2022. Nu’s core products include credit cards, NuConta and personal loans.

While the company’s gross profit totalled $363.5 million in quarter two, increasing 109% year-on-year FX neutral basis (FXN). The gross profit margin was 31% in quarter two.

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Bitcoin (BTC) $ 26,169.01 1.58%
Ethereum (ETH) $ 1,577.85 1.05%
Litecoin (LTC) $ 64.10 1.32%
Bitcoin Cash (BCH) $ 205.96 1.66%