Ripple Defies US Blockade, Expands in Brazil with Mercado Bitcoin Partnership
Ripple, a leading digital asset infrastructure provider, has partnered with Brazil’s largest crypto exchange, Mercado Bitcoin, cracking the newest possible blockade by the US Government.
The SEC, on October 2, filed a notice of appeal in the lawsuit with an aim to reverse a decision rendered by Judge Analisa Torres.
Ripple Expands to LATAM Despite SEC Battle
Legal analysts had argued that the SEC would appeal the 2023 decision, which held that secondary sales of XRP would not constitute a security transaction. Judge Torres found that XRP is a digital asset and does not meet all criteria of the SEC Howey test as an investment contract, meaning that a ruling found it is not, in and of itself, a security.
The company however decided to spread its business even further making its way to LATAM countries. In the latest statement, the firm said Mercado Bitcoin is leveraging its service in the quest to bolster its treasury operations internally between Brazil and Portugal.
The idea is to offer support for international payments both to corporate and retail customers, and facilitate transactions in Brazilian Reais. This makes Mercado Bitcoin the first user of enterprise-focused payment solution in Latin America.
As per the official statement:
“Ripple Payments offers unique capabilities that are important to crypto businesses enabling them to streamline operations, optimize liquidity, and ultimately improve margins through real-time payment settlement.”
The head of banking at Mercado Bitcoin, Jordan Abud, said that this partnership with is an opportunity for the exchange to further its services and internationalize. In fact, Brazil is a familiar market, considering how the company began operations in Brazil back in 2019 and also launched the Brazil Fund as it looks to foster the development of XRP Ledger (XRPL) in the country..
Latin America Domination with Stablecoin and Payments
Ripple is a financial technology company focused on enabling fast international money transfers. It’s also the company behind XRP, currently the seventh-biggest cryptocurrency by market capitalization. The company was sued in 2020 by the SEC, which said the San Francisco company broke the law in raising money by selling its digital token without filing with the agency as a security.
The SEC filed its aforementioned appeal a day after Bitwise Asset Management Inc. became the first company to file with the securities regulator an application for an ETF that directly invests in XRP, the world’s seventh-largest digital token. Coming off last year’s partial win against the Securities and Exchange Commission – a result seen as a victory for the digital asset industry.
The company is continuing to grow and expand in Latin America after a deal earlier with Colombia’s central bank to explore central bank digital currency technology.
Since opening its Brazilian office, the company has identified the region as a “critical hub” for crypto innovation, tugged both ways by high adoption rates and increasing financial inclusion.
Ripple Labs CEO Brad Garlinghouse also recently said its US-dollar pegged stablecoin, RLUSD, will soon be released. “Weeks not months,” Garlinghouse added. He also explained that, as it prepares to launch its stablecoin-expected first to launch in the US before expanding internationally – Ripple is working proactively with US regulators toward compliance.
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