In a recent interview with local Brazilian news outlet Seu Dinheiro, Eduardo Abreu, vice president of new business at payments giant Visa, revealed the company’s intentions to integrate crypto assets onto its platform for both payments and as a store of value, including the leading cryptocurrency, Bitcoin (BTC).
Back in March 2021, Visa’s CEO of Brazil, Fernando Teles, introduced the concept of adopting tokenized payments, as well as an application programming interface, or API, designed to bridge the gap between traditional financial institutions and crypto services.
In the interview, Abreu shared his belief that greater adoption will require the integration of traditional banking activity within the cryptocurrency ecosystem so that customers can transact with fiat and crypto within the same environment.
Visa already offers 180 currencies on its platform and will look to leverage its 170 million global customer base and established fintech relationships with national banks Alterbank, Ripio and Zro in maximizing adoption in the region.
There was no specific announcement as to the date of the launch, but it is widely expected in the coming months.
“The great advantage of adopting Bitcoin is, without a doubt, its ease. Without needing to exchange a fiat currency, there is an optimization of exchanges when using Bitcoin,” said Abreu.
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Alongside this service, Abreu also suggested the possibility of customers receiving cashback in crypto:
“Brazilians already have the culture of receiving card points, miles, discounts, etc. Why not receive cryptocurrencies with their credit card as well?”
Visa is no stranger to making headlines in the cryptocurrency space. In a bid to portray its pioneer status as a cultural intermediary of traditional and modern finance, Visa last month purchased a CryptoPunk nonfungible token avatar for 50 Ether (ETH) — $150,000 at the time of sale.