Ethereum just got a boost in Mexico, with local cryptocurrency exchange Bitso adding the ability to buy and sell Ether with Mexican pesos.
Bitso announced in a press release last week that it was expanding beyond its Bitcoin/peso market to add an Ethereum/Peso market, touted as the first ETH/MXN market.
Pablo Gonzalez, CEO of Bitso, on taking advantage of both Bitcoin and Ether’s potential, says:
“We believe in a future where Bitcoin and Ethereum are deeply compatible – Bitcoin being used as the means to store and transfer value, and Ethereum as the engine for the creation of next gen financial applications. It was only natural for us to incorporate Ether trading to Bitso, and thus open access to this exciting innovation to all Mexicans. We can’t wait to see the things that the brilliant minds in this country create using this technology.”
Growing demand for Ethereum in Latin America
The growing demand for Ethereum is consistent with the greater trend of cryptocurrency’s rise in Latin America. Over the course of 2015, Bitcoin transactions through payment processor BitPay increased 1,747% over the previous year. Bitcoin trading volume in Mexican pesos also increased by 600% last year.
José Rodríguez, Bitso’s Head of Payments and Business Developments, says that there has been a strong interest in Ethereum and its potential on the Mexican market for quite a while. And a part of the Mexican Bitcoin community has been looking for options to trade ETH, as it will let them trade directly with Mexican pesos.
Pablo Gonzalez, CEO of Bitso, confirms the increasing demand: “Over the past months Bitso customers have requested to exchange ETH as well as Bitcoin in our platform, it was a growing request that we could not ignore.”