Mercado Libre said it will discontinue its native token Mercado Coin starting April 17, ending a crypto rewards program that has been in place for about four years. After that date, users will no longer be able to buy or sell the token, or receive it through purchases made on the platform.
Mercado Coin program comes to an end after nearly four years
Mercado Coin was first launched in Brazil in August 2022 and later expanded to other Latin American markets. Built on Ethereum’s ERC-20 standard, the token was operated through Mercado Pago, the company’s digital wallet unit, in partnership with crypto exchange Ripio. The program gave users token rewards when they bought selected products on Mercado Libre, tying e-commerce activity to a blockchain-based loyalty system.
That setup is now being retired. From April 17 onward, Mercado Coin will no longer have a functional role inside the Mercado Libre ecosystem, as the company stops support for purchases, sales, and reward distribution tied to the token.
Users can sell, spend, or wait for automatic conversion
Mercado Libre outlined three options for users still holding Mercado Coin. They can manually sell the token inside the Mercado Pago app. They can also use it as a form of credit to offset purchases on Mercado Libre. If they do nothing, the platform will automatically convert their remaining balance into local fiat currency and deposit the funds into their digital wallet account.
The company said the automatic conversion will be made into the user’s local currency, with examples including the Brazilian real and Argentine peso.
Bitcoin stays on the balance sheet as stablecoin support remains
The shutdown of Mercado Coin does not mean Mercado Libre is leaving crypto altogether. The company said its balance sheet still includes more than $38 million in Bitcoin. Mercado Pago also continues to support stablecoin transfers and token trading, and the company has introduced its own dollar-pegged stablecoin.
The change points to a narrower crypto strategy. Rather than keeping a platform-issued rewards token alive, Mercado Libre is keeping its focus on Bitcoin and stablecoins, two asset categories it still supports through its existing products.