Nikolas Sargeant
TL;DR
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Mercado Libre has announced that it is shutting down its homegrown cryptocurrency, Mercado Coin, nearly four years after introducing it to reward customer engagement.
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Starting April 17, users will no longer be able to buy, sell or earn cashback in Mercado Coin.
Mercado Libre Winds Down its Mercado Coin
E-commerce giant Mercado Libre has announced that it is winding down on its native cryptocurrency, Mercado Coin. This latest development comes nearly four years after introducing it to boost customer engagement across its platform.
Mercado Libre informed its users via a notification and email from Mercado Pago, its digital wallet, which will handle the phase-out.
The company added that starting April 17, users won’t be able to buy, sell or earn cashback in Mercado Coin, effectively ending its utility inside the ecosystem.
Mercado Coin has been around since August 2022. It began in Brazil before expanding to other markets, and it is used to reward users for purchases on the platform.
Participating products offered token incentives that could be used for future purchases or cashed out. The token, built on Ethereum’s ERC-20 standard, was accessible via the Mercado Pago app and operated in partnership with crypto exchange Ripio.
However, with Mercado Libre shutting down the coins, users can sell their tokens through the app, spend them as purchase credits on Mercado Libre, or wait for an automatic conversion into their local fiat currency, which will be deposited into their accounts.
Mercado Libre didn’t explain the decision but added that it continues to support crypto features such as stablecoin transfers and token trading via Mercado Pago, and holds more than $38 million worth of bitcoin on its balance sheet. The company also has its own dollar-backed stablecoin.
