Coinbase lands in Brazil with cryptocurrency “artillery”

Coinbase finally opens its doors to Brazilian retail customers starting this Tuesday (21).

After a gestation of more than a year, the American brokerage announces today the launch of its platform in Portuguese, bringing to the country much of the experience offered to consumers in the US.

It includes more than 240 digital assets supported by Pix and the marketplace of NFTs, digital wallet, and staking platform, the passive income mechanism in which users deposit their cryptos in exchange for an income.

“We are bringing to Brazil the same user experience that has made us the leading exchange in the US, which is a super important crypto market, and which today more than 100 million people use around the world,” explains Fabio Plein, Coinbase’s regional director of the Americas.

“It is a market that has grown a lot in recent years, but we believe we are still at the beginning of this journey, and there are still many positive growth cycles to be developed.”

Among the main products offered by Coinbase in other markets, the only absence in Brazil in this launch is the debit card loaded with cryptocurrencies, a solution that rivals have already introduced in the country.

The company says it focuses in this first moment on the most fundamental products but reinforces a long-term vision to be a bridge for the beginning of users’ journey with crypto.

For now, the strategy is to allow users to take their reals to the wallet and acquire digital assets.

In a second moment, new solutions, such as those developed in Base, a blockchain compatible with Ethereum (ETH) announced in February, should arrive.

EXPANSION

Coinbase, like other global cryptocurrency brokerages, sees Brazil as a hub for expansion to the rest of the continent.

The strategy of looking outside the US has gained momentum within the company.

According to a Bloomberg report, the company is already considering internationalizing its operations.

The main reason would be the increasing pressure exerted by regulators, eager to create barriers for a possible “new FTX” after the collapse of the Sam Bankman-Fried exchange in November.

In Brazil, the company says it has found a friendlier regulatory environment, with representatives who understand the importance of not plastering a new industry that presents opportunities for the country.

Coinbase does not clarify whether the staking product, which became the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) target, won the direct endorsement of Brazilian regulators – executives talked last year with the Central Bank, for example.

The company spokesman, however, says he is “very sure” that the products launched today align with what is currently allowed by Brazilian law.

HIATUS

Coinbase touched its feet in Brazil as recently as 2021 when it opened a technology hub to attract engineers and other Web3 industry professionals.

Shortly after, it was speculated that the company would be considering entering the country through acquisition: first Bitso, then 2TM, owner of Mercado Bitcoin.

The negotiations, however, were not successful.

Weeks later, Plein, an executive with stints at PicPay and Uber, arrived to head the Brazilian operation – taking over, as of December 2022, the direction for Latin America.

“We strongly believe in the strength of our product, the experience, and the quality of the technology. These things depend greatly on us, so we chose to enter the Brazilian market with our brand,” he says.

Coinbase was off the radar in Brazil for much of 2022, a challenging year for the crypto market as a whole.

The company suffered from turbulence in the digital asset sector, pressured by rising interest rates in the US.

Being one of the few publicly traded exchanges, the company made layoffs and also felt the hit on its shares, which plummeted more than 80% in the period.

However, the executive in charge of the company in the region says that this was not the reason for the gap between the kick-off in the country and the arrival of the product to the final customer.

The last few months, says Plein, served to mature the project and test the solutions to ensure that the experience was up to the standard of service and reliability that “differentiated us over time.”

“That was the main factor,” he said.

In any case, the market timing seems more propitious this early 2023. Bitcoin, the world’s leading cryptocurrency, has accumulated a high of more than 65% since the turn of the year. Analysts continue to see upside potential amid the US banking crisis – everything a business that lives by charging trading fees could want.

“The whole scenario of uncertainty with traditional banking services has been reinforcing the need for crypto as an alternative, which helps explain this growth. It’s an impactful start to the year for everyone involved in the industry,” he assesses.

With information from InfoMoney

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