Paxos revealed as PicPay's crypto partner in Brazil

Blockchain infrastructure platform Paxos is partnering with Brazilian fintech app PicPay to launch its new cryptocurrency trading feature, Paxos said on Wednesday.

PicPay first said it would start supporting crypto payments on July 11, in addition to launching a cryptocurrency exchange and Brazilian real-pegged stablecoin. It would initially support bitcoin, ether and Paxos's Pax Dollar (USDP) stablecoin, PicPay said.

PicPay users can now buy, sell and hold those three currencies, Paxos' Head of Revenue Michael Coscetta wrote in an August 10 blog post. PicPay also is "working" on the crypto payments feature, he noted in the blog. This will be available "later this year," a Paxos spokesperson said in an email to The Block. 

Although sources told Brazilian news site Portal do Bitcoin in July that Paxos would be PicPay's crypto partner, this appears to be the first time Paxos has publicly announced its involvement in the project.  

“PicPay is one of the most disruptive players in payments in Brazil and our goal is to lead the growth of the crypto market, by eliminating the complexity that is still associated with it and expanding information on the technology, so that everyone can take advantage of this asset class and technology," PicPay’s Head of Crypto Bruno Gregory said in a statement featured in Paxos' blog post. 

Paxos also is working with at least two other high-profile fintechs in Brazil that have decided to offer cryptocurrencies in recent months. The company announced a crypto-focused deal in May with fintech unicorn Nubank.  Nubank reported in late July that it its crypto platform Nucripto had already attracted 1 million users.

Paxos also powers the crypto wallet for Mercado Libre's financial app Mercado Pago, which launched in December 2021. That new offering gained 1 million users in 60 days according to Guilherme Cohn, Mercado Libre's senior manager corporate development.