EN | Why Stablecoins Matter for Latin America | MERGE Madrid 2025

Well, good afternoon everyone. It's a pleasure to be in merge again. My name is Regina Pedroso. I'm the executive director for Nab talking, the Brazilian association of crypto assets companies. And for start, I'd like to introduce my my fellows.

Let's start by Leandro, nearby. Can you introduce you and your company, please? Sure, I'm one of the founders of Avenia. Avenia is today the issuer of the main stable coin for BRL. We have transacted over 1 billion reais last month.

Uh and we have like 90% market share in unique transfers on all among all BRL stable coins. And on top of BRLA, we basically created a cross-border payments infrastructure for global companies to connect into the Brazilian rails and be able to grow in Brazil. Uh whoa. Damn, there we go. Damon Burke.

Uh so, I lead digital assets for the Americas for company called Nuvei. Nuvei. We're a payment processor, but like many others, we've gone heavy into digital assets. Uh and um yeah, happy to provide more context as the conversation gets deeper. Yes, I'm I'm Ana Paula.

I'm from Nomos, a wealth of company, and I have responsible for cross-border payments. So, I work in from 26 years working with the traditional way from cross-border payments, and now we are starting working with stable coins. Hi, everyone. My name is Monica Ramirez. I'm a managing director at Anchorage Digital.

Anchorage Digital is home to the first and only OCC chartered crypto bank. Our core products include custody, staking, settlement, and now we have a a new team on stable coins. And within the stable coins team, we're focusing on infrastructure for issuers, stable coin issuance as a service, especially on the with the results of the genius bill being signed in the US, and then also stablement, what we like to call when we settle stable coins among different banking institutions. Happy to be here and and collaborate more. Yeah.

And the word stable coins is very special, and I I'd like to ask for the start. Why stable coins are so special? Uh cool. I can start. My vision about stable coins is more around the following parallel.

Basically, if you look into Brazil, you have several types of accounts. You have checking account, savings account, investment accounts, uh non-resident accounts, broker-dealer accounts, and the list goes on. But in stable coins, it's all like wallets. The same goes for payment methods. You have TED, boleto, Pix, but Pix there is Pix copy and paste, Pix key, Pix QR code, and also the list goes on.

No, keep going. But yeah, there are several. But basically, in wallet in stable coins, it's all like transfers. So, if you think that complexity in a multi-country level, it's even harder to build using the legacy methods, but in stable coins, it's very standardized. So, you basically can create an infrastructure in which you drop down from BRL to ARS to USD to euros, and you have the same developer experience.

So, with stable coins, creating financial products will be much much much easier down the road, and this will create uh uh the possibility of every company to be global since day one, and deep dive in the corridors or the countries that they feel most option instead of okay, I need to start from my country and then getting other countries as we go. So, this is why I think it's so special. Sure. When you think about Latin countries working with the traditional way, we cannot send money for these countries. So, when you think stable coins, we can have the solution, and it's just to complete as Leandro said, uh with easier, it's uh quickly, and it's cheaper.

So, we have the solution and preserve value uh just to individual and to business company. And Yeah, for for me, when we talk about stable coins and we only reference it as a payment rail, I think it really misses the value and the point of stable coins. Since value and ownership travel together in a tokenized assets, including stable coins, it's very important how these are structured. So, we're very fortunate at Anchorage where we can provide the full stack when you issue a stable coin. So, questions that you need to ask when you purchase, own, or looking into issuing your own stable coin, the key components are custody.

So, what type of custody will you have to house this stable coin in and use it? The second is distribution. Do you have enough distribution and and liquidity so the stable coin can be accepted and a good use of of transfer for you know, what it's supposed to do for cross-border. And then also having the ability to convert to fiat and having all those capabilities, it's super important to understand what is the full stack of the stable coin rather than just considering considering it as a means to an end. It's very important to to see the whole picture.

You know, Damon, different questions. Uh do you think stable scale coins can reduce inequality and increase the inclusion of financial inclusion? What for your opinion, what's the impact of the stable coins in social? Massive. So, obviously, like for us, we're coming at it from a payments angle.

Um but to Monica's point, there are millions of people that the first thing they do when they receive uh Venezuelan bolivares, Argentine pesos, and in many markets in in Latin America that don't have as known as as volatile currency, the first thing they do is buy US-backed stable coin US-backed stable coins, right? To hold simply to hold value. Then when you want to spend the those funds, you want a credential, right? You don't Not everybody is accepting crypto. Most Most merchants are not accepting crypto right now, but you want to be able to facilitate that spend.

Um and third, with the Anchorage USDG, you can also earn yield while you're holding that that coin. So, listen, before this, I was at Binance, and there are millions of people that have that use Binance as their primary banking institution. Um just simply to hold value. They're either underbanked or unbanked um completely, and they hold their value in in crypto in stable coins, and then they want to move those funds either for remittances or payments or to pay employees or to pay suppliers. So, essentially, you know, as Leandro was saying, keeping everything on chain, whether it's a US-backed stable coin, but converting that on chain to a real-backed stable coin is significantly faster, cheaper, uh um more secure, more efficient, etc.

Um and so, to answer your question, I think it raises all boats, not just those that have access to banking institutions and have collateral, um but everybody has financial inclusion. Um and I think that's that's a big part of, you know, the the end goal of of introducing stables to to the at least to the region. And you know, when the money's go on chain, uh the central bank shows a lot of concern about it. This is a complex situation in a financial market. How can I I'd like to heard of what the opinion about it because in the future, it probably will happen in a few years, the money movies to on chain.

How you think the will be the impact in the financial traditional financial? Well, I think I Sorry, I don't mean No, it's open for all. Yeah, I mean, I I think to your point, I think Visa is Visa and Mastercard, the card networks, are becoming relevant, right? They're doing on and off-ramping. So, they're benefiting.

You have um stable coin local stable coins that are only benefiting the central bank, right? It's pushing up the real. And and clearly, the US-backed stable coins, which is 95 plus percent uh of the world's stable coins, is great for the US Treasury, right? So, and central bank. Um so, listen, it's the way the world is going.

Yes. So, you can either swim upstream or jump jump on the boat. And and I think, you know, many of us here realize that and and you're starting to see mass adoption and the benefits from that, right? It should not the the fees that you want to pay are not in moving money cross border. Uh and through I mean, like I always say this, like you would never build payments the way it exists traditional payments the way it exists today if you were building it from scratch.

It makes no sense. It's overly expensive, it's slow, etc. Uh so, right now we're kind of working with a 1.0 world and a 2.0 world.

It is.

And I think as we progress, things are going to move. Everything is going to be on chain. And and and I do think it can be multi it can be beneficial for not just Yeah, not just, you know, uh Web3 companies, but but the traditional finance as well. Nice, Monica.

the US, uh regulation has been very helpful with uh sign- Yes. In the US, regulation has been very helpful with the signing of the Genius Bill on July 18th. And really what that allows us to do is to issue stable coins that are backed by secured assets. So, the Genius Bill spells out what type of assets, including cash, short-term securities, very very specific on what a uh payment instrument stable coin should really look like. And I think that that has allowed the industry to really uh put their best foot forward to issue stable coins that could not only be on the used on the institutional level, but then eventually uh to the retail.

Um Anchorage itself, uh we are regulated by the OCC and that will be one of the primary regulators um for the Genius compliant stable coins. Among the two partnerships that we've already announced, one is Athena. Um so, they are onshoring USDT B, so it will be a Genius compliant stable coin. And uh the other partnership is with Tether to issue USAT out of the US. So, really what what this is telling us is two large players in the industry are recognizing that regulation is super helpful to really grow and take it to the next level in the US.

And that's something that we're willing to partner with additional uh companies and enterprises to to really see stable coins grow in a very regulated and um very efficient way. You know, we have the dominance around the world with uh for USDT and USDC. And I'd like to ask you, Leandro, what is so important is local stable coins? Which is the main role for the local stable coins? Sure.

So, when you think of the world of stable coins, you have basically the dollar, which has uh instant product market fit because everyone wants to hold dollars, uh which is not the same for local currencies. Local currencies are driven by business use cases. So, for instance, in Brazil, if a offshore company wants to hold BRL balances, uh the way to do that in the traditional finance world is basically they have to get a local registry, they have to open a non-resident account with a legacy FX bank, and it's super hard, super bureaucratic, can take months, uh several emails exchanges with the bank. But if you're holding a token, it's just holding a token. So simple as any other kind of uh similar product.

So, with that, we what we are seeing is that companies that has like accounts payable in Brazil or they have demand from users that are acquiring users in Brazil or they have to buy some asset, some some company, some license, some uh anything, uh basically they can use the BRL A way because it's totally interchangeable with PIX. Uh it's one to one, totally transparent with a third-party audit firm attesting reserves, uh and each way more efficient for them to to do that in uh the tokenized world. So, basically the the way we see the world is going is that obviously there is the macroeconomic uh thing like the the economies won't just like dollarize their economies just because USDT and USDC are dominating the market. Uh it's mainly they trying to protect their own economies. And if the world is heading to a place in which stable coins are this foundational layer for every type of financial service, the second-order effect is that you need local stable coins doing uh lots of what today happens inside the correspondent banking network and Swift, uh going on chain.

So, our idea is to have those assets uh being done in a compliant way, a transparent way, very efficient and technology-first uh approach uh for global companies to create this uh way to operate in Brazil seamlessly. No, indeed, Leandro. Inside the association is clear for uh for us uh observing the market that uh we have a the payments uh that absolutely involve stable coins. But for other side, the tokenization market needed this kind of infrastructure. So, what Leandro was explaining is very important.

It probably will be the next step, the next uh call to action from the companies to preparate the payments with stable local stable coins. On the RWA specifically, like we we focus a lot on the money movement side of things just because it's our main business model today, but we envision that RWAs are going to be a thing very relevant down the road. Uh and basically what you're doing is you're getting money from uh people that has uh money disbursed uh money to dispose about to invest, and you're getting that into a tokenized asset. So, the bridge from this fiat world to the tokenized asset is stable coins. So, if you're doing uh issuing a an asset in BRL in Brazil, uh which collateral from Brazilian assets or anything, the best way to do that is use the same currency stable coin in order to do so.

So, it's also something that will power lots of companies to to help like this on-ramp directly to tokenized assets. But since it's still a emerging market that is getting relevance and traction, uh it's something that we we just don't focus on that much. And something that we are working now is regulation. Yeah. We must try to draft better regulations to open the market for scalability.

For your opinion, Monica, for a start, which is the main challenge in the US or in your market? What's your opinion about the regulation scenario? So, the the best starting point is is really starting with the the Genius Bill that was was signed in July. Uh there's 18 months since the signature uh to do rulemaking and all the uh relevant agencies are going through that process right now. That could take 18 months or it could be a little bit shorter, but we're starting to see a lot of activity uh because there is a dire interest and need in in issuing stable coins out of the US.

And uh the sooner that the regulations get get uh solidified, then uh more actors can issue safely, correctly under the the framework. Um and then there's eventually uh discussions on the Clarity Bill, which is a a more market infrastructure bill in the United States that that also has to permeate through the through through Congress. So, um we can honestly say in the last 10 months there's been a lot of great regulatory activity. So, we we hope that the momentum continues and and that we really uh use this time to really solidify the benefits of issuing safely and really getting uh the market ready for what is next with asset-rich paradigm where many of us interact automatically with assets um on a regular basis. Elena, you are come from the traditional market.

How the traditional market is addressing the digital transformation for stable coins? Yes. Uh today we are working with educational, especially the in the bridge. I think that we are in the bridge with the traditional way and the digital way. Uh but the we are accepting very very good because that's the way the the future.

That's cheaper, that's faster, Yes. and that's the solution. As I told, talking about Latin, uh we cannot send money for Argentina, for example. But with stable coin, we can do this. For Peru, for example, too.

We cannot work for Swift. That's the traditional way, but with stable coin, we can do. And we can do fast, we can do cheaper, and so, that's the solution that we have. Okay. What about Damon?

What about risks? Many people is asking What about risks? What about risks? There are no Can you share about it? There's no risk?

There What what finish your question. Yes, let's do it. Such a volatility. Volatility is always volatility Yes. Okay.

Sorry. That's okay. That's a It's always a question in a table. How can you address this kind of uh volatility in in in

in stable coins. Now in stable coins in the market volatility regulatory uncertainty or dependency on foreign back assets. Well, listen. I mean

Not not I would say a couple of things, right? The the It's in the definition of the of the of of the a stable coin ideally is stable, right? Exactly, but

But but I think what's what's very interesting that's happening is is that you have local stable coins which you have a you have you have a stable coins in Argentina, right? That's not very stable. Yeah. But you're getting the same benefits that Leandro is talking about about money movement internally and off-ramp in from from bridges from from USD back stable coins or euro back stable coins into local fiat via a Argentine peso back stable coin, right? So um I don't I mean I think the I think the risks are higher around regulation than exactly what's happened, but ideally what happens I mean this is happening in Brazil.

Leandro is very close to it you're I'm sure very close to it. Brazil is very close to to passing its own essential essentially genius act and um and I think what's going to happen is you'll have the best part the best practices of Mika and genius will be adopted and to create their own regulation in the principal markets at least in Brazil, Mexico, Colombia, Argentina in the region and ideally the rest of the markets will follow suit. It is it's very different than Europe where you have regulation passes in The Hague and other 42 countries just have to adopt, right? So it it's dynamic and and makes it maybe more challenging, but but there's also high opportunity and so I think the risks are that regulation doesn't keep keep pace with the market, right? that that that when we if when we go back into bear market that there is less attention in in you know I think right now we're building an infrastructure layer.

We're building crypto as as and really none of what we're talking about here has to do with whether the market goes up or goes down. Yeah. But you inevitably you start to lose attention and and prioritization when we go back into bear market. So that's a that's another risk. Lack of interoperability is a issue for you?

Like if for interoperability between the the network.

Interoperability, yeah.

Yes. Yeah. Yeah, right. That's another is that uh is is moving same coin different coin on multiple blockchains, right? Having a central uh depository and then being able to reissue or translate that value onto another blockchain that is like a hurdle that the industry is obviously trying to overcome.

Um But I think I think we're we're getting there. Okay. We are getting close to the end of the panel. Next steps and next your vision for the next steps to end of the market. Starting from Monica and Uh for for me next steps is Anchorage becoming one of the largest issuers of stable coins specifically for genius compliant stable coins and that's where it will get really interesting in terms of having internal liquidity and have the ability to really promote what a good solid stable coin should look like.

So stay tuned and looking forward to seeing everybody here in in Brazil. I think that's the governmental provide a clear regulation, but and to be open to innovation and not from distance, but understanding how the people are already using the stable coin and create regulations including to protect the users, too. They I would say two things. One, tokenized assets, right? Similar to what Leandro was saying, the ability to earn yield on funds that are in in float.

Um uh during the payment flow whether they're they're in a holding in custody that is going to be a game changer, right? So the ability to earn yield on on tokenized tokenized assets. And two is is moving tradfi on chain. Right? Right now we've got a very like very small percentage of the of the tradfi world that's even investing in crypto let alone using those rails, but it's happening and there's multiple companies and we want to be a part of that.

Um and and so I think those are the two biggest trends and maybe biggest opportunities. Perfect. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, basically I see like the we could grow to be bigger than Visa plus MasterCard in stable coins without the regulatory clarity.

So although it's a risk, we see that more of a tailwind because if we could grow it without it and with now that get genius act Mika compliant VASP in Brazil VASP in Argentina all those regulations coming probably that the the the ex the the growth rate will actually accelerate. So for us it's mainly becoming this infrastructure layer that applications can build upon and be like every global company uses Latin America as their core expansion region and having one provider that is reliable that can support top tens of thousands of transactions every day and that has like all the stamp of approval of regulators of law firms of everything it's the the the way to go for us. And for me to the close this panel very important is cyber security, compliancy and network monitoring. This three pillar of this what is support that we have will happen safely. Yeah.

Thanks a lot for this quick in talk, but it's a pleasure to be here. Thank you, Regina. Thank you, guys. Yeah.