Belo, a digital wallet focused on Latin America, has successfully raised $14 million in a Series A funding round, led by Tether, a prominent stablecoin issuer. The funding round also included investments from Titan Fund, The Venture City, Mindset Ventures, and G2. The company intends to utilize the funds to expand its services into Mexico, Chile, Colombia, Peru, Bolivia, and Paraguay, while enhancing its infrastructure across the region. Additionally, Belo aims to strengthen its presence in Brazil by targeting freelancers, remote workers, and individuals who frequently transfer money across borders.
Founded in Buenos Aires in 2021, Belo's digital wallet has gained popularity, with over 3 million users across Latin America. According to CEO Manuel Beaudroit, the company has achieved three years of profitable operations and is now focused on scaling. Stablecoins have gained significant traction in emerging markets as an alternative to traditional banking systems, particularly in regions with high inflation, currency volatility, or limited access to dollar-denominated accounts.
In Latin America, stablecoins are commonly used for storing value, sending remittances, and circumventing costly foreign exchange systems. Belo's innovative approach combines payments, foreign exchange, and cross-border transfers into a single, streamlined flow, aiming to reduce friction in a region where moving money between countries remains slow and expensive. The company's model leverages crypto infrastructure to simplify the process, and Tether's backing highlights a broader effort to expand stablecoin-based payment systems in markets with strong demand for dollar-linked assets.
In an interview with CoinDesk, Beaudroit emphasized Belo's role in a wider shift, where crypto tools are filling gaps left by traditional finance. 'Crypto will start to do what traditional financial services haven't done, which is servicing people and their companies,' he stated. As Belo expands its regional footprint, the company is also hiring across product, engineering, and operations.