Bitso

Bitso is a cryptocurrency exchange and financial super-app headquartered in Mexico, built to bring practical access to digital assets, cross-border payments, and global investment markets to users across Latin America. Founded in 2014, it has grown into the dominant retail crypto platform in the region, serving over 9 million users in Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, Chile, and Peru.

The Problem Bitso Solves

Latin American households face a persistent set of financial challenges: high inflation eating into savings, expensive and slow cross-border remittances, and limited access to global capital markets. In many of Bitso's core markets, local currencies have lost substantial purchasing power over extended periods. Bitso's pitch is straightforward: one application where users can protect savings in dollar-pegged stablecoins, send money across borders cheaply, earn yield on crypto assets, trade over 100 cryptocurrencies, and invest in thousands of US stocks and ETFs — all from a mobile phone.

How It Works

Bitso operates as a regulated exchange and custodian. Users fund accounts via local payment rails — SPEI in Mexico, PIX in Brazil, COELSA in Argentina — at no deposit fee. From there they can buy, sell, and hold crypto directly, or route funds into Bitso's earn products, which pay weekly yield on assets including USDC, USDT, ETH, DOT, ATOM, and SOL. Yield products carry no lock-up periods, with deposits credited each Monday.

The platform runs two trading interfaces: a standard consumer app for everyday buying and selling, and Bitso Alpha, an advanced interface for active traders requiring deeper order books, more granular controls, and lower fees.

For cross-border transfers, Bitso Shift handles international remittances, converting local currency into stablecoins or crypto at the sending end and disbursing at the receiving end. The company reports facilitating more than three billion cross-border transfers across its operational history.

On the business side, Bitso Business provides APIs and treasury solutions for companies that want to move money internationally, manage stablecoin liquidity, or accept crypto payments. The trading API supports RESTful and WebSocket connections for order placement, OTC request-for-quote flows, real-time market data, and account management.

Key Features

Crypto trading: Over 100 digital assets available for spot trading, with a maker fee of 0.04% and taker fee of 0.05% on USD markets. Mexican peso markets carry higher fees (0.36%–0.60%) in line with local market depth.

Stock and ETF access: Since early 2025, Bitso users can trade more than 5,000 US and international equities and ETFs commission-free through a partnership with broker-dealer Alpaca. Holdings are SIPC-insured.

Tokenized stocks (xStocks): Blockchain-based tokenized representations of stocks give users 24/7 exposure to equities like Apple, NVIDIA, and Tesla without traditional brokerage hours.

Stablecoin yield: USDC and USDT earn approximately 4% APY with no lock-up, paid weekly. USDC has been expanded across multiple blockchain networks including Stellar, Base, Polygon, Arbitrum, and Avalanche.

Earn on SOL: SOL is among the supported assets for Bitso's yield program, offering an APY range of approximately 2.8%–5%, giving retail users passive exposure to Solana validator rewards without self-custody complexity.

Visa debit card: Available in select markets, allowing users to spend crypto balances directly.

Automated tax reporting: Available for Mexico and Brazil, reducing compliance friction for retail traders.

Supported Assets

Bitso supports over 100 cryptocurrencies including Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), Solana (SOL), XRP, Cardano (ADA), Dogecoin (DOGE), Litecoin (LTC), Polkadot (DOT), Cosmos (ATOM), and stablecoins USDC and USDT. Recent additions include NEX and USAT (Tether's new dollar-backed stablecoin).

Security and Audit Status

Bitso has not suffered a public hack since its 2014 founding. Assets are held in multi-signature cold storage. In late 2025 the exchange completed a CCSS (Cryptocurrency Security Standard) version 9 Level II audit, a third-party certification of its key management and custody practices. The 2026 mobile app release added biometric authentication and AI-powered fraud detection.

Team and Funding History

Bitso was founded in Mexico City in 2014 by Daniel Vogel (CEO), Ben Peters, and Pablo González. The team's stated motivation was solving the financial problems faced by people living in Latin American economies with chronic currency instability.

The company has raised approximately $331 million in total funding. A 2021 Series C round — which included participation from Coinbase Ventures and Tiger Global — valued Bitso at $2.2 billion, making it one of the first Latin American crypto unicorns. Geographic expansion into Chile and Peru came in late 2025.

Regulatory Status

In Mexico, Bitso operates through Nvio Pagos México, S.A.P.I. de C.V., which holds an IFPE (Institución de Fondos de Pago Electrónico) license under Mexico's Fintech Law, regulated by the Bank of Mexico and the CNBV. Internationally, the group entity holds a DLT provider license from the Gibraltar Financial Services Commission (GFSC). The combination of CNBV and GFSC licenses makes Bitso one of the few Latin American exchanges with both domestic and international regulatory standing. The platform does not currently serve US retail customers.

Solana Ecosystem Fit

Bitso provides Latin American retail access to Solana's native token and ecosystem. SOL is available for spot trading and earns yield through Bitso's staking program (2.8%–5% APY). USDC — the dominant stablecoin on Solana — is a primary savings and payments vehicle on the platform. For millions of users in inflation-prone economies, Bitso serves as a key on-ramp into Solana-native assets and dollar-denominated digital savings.