Interlace has opened an office in Brazil and assembled a local team led by country manager Guilherme Santos. According to the company's announcement, the Brazil operation will connect local financial institutions, cross-border trade platforms, digital asset companies and Web3 projects with its global payment and digital asset infrastructure. The expansion gives Interlace a physical presence in one of Latin America's largest digital asset markets as part of its strategy to make stablecoin-powered payments and digital financial infrastructure more accessible internationally.
Brazil already has significant stablecoin activity alongside an established instant-payment system. As reported by crypto.news, Pix had nearly 170 million users, while the system processed BRL 11 trillion in transactions during 2024. In June, crypto.news reported on Oobit, which integrated Tether's USDT with Brazil's Pix network, allowing users to deposit Brazilian reais, hold USDT, and make payments through Pix keys or QR codes. The company recently attended Blockchain.RIO in Rio de Janeiro, where Santos joined a panel covering digital assets, stablecoin payments and financial infrastructure alongside discussions about blockchain-based settlement connecting with existing financial services.
Interlace is entering Brazil as regulators increase supervision of digital asset transactions, particularly those involving stablecoins and cross-border payments. According to an IMF report, the International Monetary Fund called for stronger oversight of Brazil's stablecoin market after cross-border crypto flows expanded faster than traditional capital movements. Banco Central do Brasil Governor Gabriel Galípolo stated that stablecoins accounted for about 90% of the country's reported crypto flows. Brazil's central bank has placed restrictions on virtual assets within supervised international payment channels through Resolution BCB No. 561, which requires payments to use foreign exchange transactions or movements through non-resident Brazilian real accounts.
Interlace is now taking its regional expansion to Argentina, where the company is scheduled to participate in the Argentina Crecimiento LATAM Digital Assets Conference from August 20-21. At the conference, the company will give a presentation covering practices from its global card-issuance projects and its plans for Latin America. Argentina has also seen financial groups experiment with stablecoins for business payments and treasury use, with separate projects from BIND Group and Petersen Group being developed through digital asset subsidiaries while Argentine banks remain restricted from offering crypto services directly.
Commercial interest in stablecoin payment rails has continued across Latin America, with Paradigm leading a $9 million Series A investment in El Dorado, a regional payments company operating across 12 Latin American countries. El Dorado said it had processed more than 5 million transactions and served more than 100,000 active users, combining fiat and stablecoin payment rails for corporate customers involved in cross-border commerce. Paradigm partner Ricardo de Arruda estimated that Latin America handles more than $100 billion in cross-border payments annually, while El Dorado CEO Guillermo Goncalvez estimated total flows could approach $1 trillion when additional business transactions are included.
