Tether has invested $20 million in Mercado Bitcoin, a Brazilian crypto platform, to boost its presence in blockchain financial services across Latin America. The money will help Mercado Bitcoin grow in areas like tokenized assets, stablecoin payments, lending, and cross-border services. This move also shows Tether’s increasing interest in real-world asset tokenization and financial innovation beyond its USDT stablecoin.
Mercado Bitcoin started in 2013 as a cryptocurrency exchange and has grown into one of Latin America’s biggest regulated digital finance platforms. It now offers tokenized assets, stablecoin payments, digital credit, and international payment services.
The platform reports serving over 4.5 million users and issuing more than 2 billion Brazilian reais (about $370 million) in tokenized assets. It holds several regulatory licenses in Brazil and Europe, including one from Brazil’s central bank.
Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino praised Mercado Bitcoin’s regulatory approach and called it one of the most complete on-chain financial platforms in the region. He said its licenses, tokenization skills, and integrated services were key reasons for the investment.
Mercado Bitcoin has been growing its tokenization business. Earlier this year, it launched over $20 million in tokenized private credit on Rootstock, Bitcoin’s smart contract sidechain, showing rising demand for blockchain financial products.
This deal is part of Tether Investments’ larger plan to support companies building digital financial infrastructure. While Tether is best known for USDT, the world’s largest stablecoin with about $184 billion in circulation, it has been expanding its investments.
Recently, Tether joined a $134 million funding round for Stablecoin Development Corporation, invested in LemFi to boost stablecoin payments in Africa and Asia, and announced plans for a Georgian lari-backed stablecoin with Georgia’s government.
Tether has also moved into other areas like artificial intelligence, biotechnology, energy, and digital media. Even though there is ongoing speculation about a stock market listing, Ardoino has said many times that Tether does not plan to go public.
The Mercado Bitcoin investment underscores Tether’s long-term ambition to help build regulated blockchain-based financial systems in emerging markets. As tokenized assets and stablecoins continue gaining mainstream acceptance, partnerships like this could accelerate the adoption of digital finance across Latin America.
Tether to Invest $20 Million in Strategic Financing Round for Mercado Bitcoin to Accelerate Onchain Financial Infrastructure in Latin America
Learn more: https://t.co/HImBaiwaX3— Tether (@tether) July 7, 2026
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