The Ripple protocol allows users and businesses send any kind of currency across its network nearly instantly to other individuals and businesses in the coverage zone. Not only are payments recieved quickly, they are also taken in the recipients native coin.
Now, its expanding into Latin America, reported Gigaom
AstroPay, a payment services provider for Facebook and Disney in Latin America, has announced the launch of Ripple LatAm, a new business that aims to take the protocol and use it to make international payments faster and easier .
“It’s a huge deal, the fact that someone can do a foreign exchange from Brazilian Reals to USDs from the comfort of their home with a minimum spread of two percent and immediately,” leader and founder Andres Bzurovski told the source. “And if we add to that, the possibility that that money could be sent anywhere in the world, from the comfort of their home and immediately, it’s a revolution for Latin America.”
Ripple LatAm is now functioning as a gateway that helps individuals get set up on the network and makes it easier for them to move money using Ripple. Ripple LatAm users must go through strict Know-Your-Customer (KYC) checks which normally take about a day to process, and require two forms of identification among other detailed security protocols. This is to insulate the system from becoming the go-to home for those looking to launder the proceeds of international success on various black markets.
For providing the service, the company takes a two percent fee for transactions and an additional .5 percent fee to “cash-out” your currency. While it’s not free, Ripple LatAm is much less expensive than competitors like Western Union that charge 8 percent.
At launch, the new company will service Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, Peru, Argenetina and Uruguay, where the Ripple LatAm is based.
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