Rio

Rio is the premier stablecoin liquidity provider for the LATAM market. We enable access to stablecoins for financial innovators to scale their products.

High-Level Overview

Rio is LATAM’s largest stablecoin foreign exchange (FX) and liquidity provider, specializing in enabling seamless access to stablecoins for financial innovators across Latin America. The company builds robust liquidity provisioning, market making, and OTC trading services that allow fintechs, exchanges, and other digital finance platforms to convert between local currencies and stablecoins quickly, securely, and with tight spreads. Rio’s platform serves institutional clients and developers, solving the problem of limited on-and-off ramp infrastructure and liquidity in emerging LATAM markets, thereby accelerating the growth of stablecoin adoption and digital asset innovation in the region.

Origin Story

Founded in 2022 and based in Mexico City, Rio was created by a team of fintech and crypto veterans including CEO Eudelio Garza, CTO Javier Roberts, and COO Ricardo Villarreal Chapa. Garza’s prior experience managing developer platforms and engaging with web3 developers revealed a critical need for better stablecoin infrastructure in emerging markets. This insight led to Rio’s focus on building a compliant, developer-friendly, and liquidity-rich stablecoin FX platform tailored for LATAM’s unique financial landscape. Early traction came from onboarding institutional clients and exchanges, quickly establishing Rio as a key liquidity provider in the region.

Core Differentiators

• Unique Stablecoin FX Model: Rio offers instant, on-chain conversion between local fiat currencies and multiple stablecoins with ultra-tight spreads, reducing costs and friction for users.
• Deep Liquidity & Market Making: Provides 24/7 liquidity reserves and advanced market making algorithms that prevent price volatility even for large transactions.
• Robust Compliance: Adheres to stringent AML policies exceeding regulatory requirements, ensuring security and trust in handling funds.
• Developer-Centric APIs: Powerful yet accessible APIs and documentation enable fintechs and developers to integrate Rio’s liquidity services seamlessly.
• Regional Expertise: Focused exclusively on LATAM, Rio understands local currencies, regulations, and market dynamics better than global competitors.

Role in the Broader Tech Landscape

Rio rides the wave of increasing stablecoin adoption and digital asset integration in Latin America, a region characterized by volatile local currencies and growing demand for efficient cross-border payments and decentralized finance (DeFi) solutions. The timing is critical as LATAM fintech innovation accelerates, but infrastructure gaps remain in liquidity and FX conversion. Rio’s platform addresses these market forces by enabling faster, cheaper, and more reliable stablecoin transactions, thus fostering a more inclusive and efficient financial ecosystem. Their role as a liquidity backbone supports the broader crypto and fintech ecosystem’s growth, empowering startups and institutional players alike.

Quick Take & Future Outlook

Looking ahead, Rio is poised to expand its stablecoin liquidity services across more LATAM countries and currencies, potentially integrating with emerging DeFi protocols and expanding OTC offerings. Trends such as increased regulatory clarity, growing institutional crypto adoption, and the rise of programmable money will shape Rio’s journey. As the leading stablecoin FX provider in LATAM, Rio’s influence is likely to deepen, driving further innovation and financial inclusion in the region’s digital economy. Their mission to eliminate friction in digital asset transactions positions them as a foundational player in LATAM’s evolving fintech landscape.