Pomelo, an Argentine startup focused on financial solutions for LatAm fintechs, received today authorization from the Brazilian Central Bank (BCB) to operate as a payment institution in the South American country, with the modalities of electronic money issuer and post-paid payment instrument.
Pomelo’s COO and General Manager in Brazil, John Paz, said that getting the BCB’s approval is an excellent achievement for Pomelo.
Making it easier to access the financial system
“The authorization from the Central Bank allows us to expand our services and access exclusive systems available only to authorized financial institutions. We are excited to continue making access to the financial system easier and uncomplicated for innovative companies, eliminating barriers, and enabling new business models,” said the executive.
According to the authorization announcement published in the Diário Oficial da União, the new payment institution will be headquartered in São Paulo, and its share capital amounts to $2.3 million. In addition, the controllers are the founders of the startup: Gaston Irigoyen, Juan Francisco Fantoni, and Hernán Alberto Corral.
Pomelo was founded in April 2021 in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and is a strategic partner of more than 100 companies and regional unicorns, with operations in Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, Colombia, Chile, and Peru.
Pomelo’s LatAm expansion
The fintech operates in the market infrastructure area, providing services in digital identity validation, digital accounts, payment processing, cards, and crypto assets.
In Brazil, Pomelo has been operating since October 2021.
Related:
To date, the fintech has raised at least $60 million in investments, mainly used to leverage its products and expand further in LatAm.
In October 2021, the company received $35 million in its Series A, led by Tiger Global. Subsequently, less than a year later, Pomelo secured a $15 million extension of the round with funds from SciFi, Insight, and Index Ventures.
