BitPagos, Now Ripio, Lands $1.9M to Promote Financial Inclusion in South America Using Bitcoin

Friday, January 6, 2017

BitPagos, a bitcoin and digital payments startup that was a Battlefield finalist at TechCrunch Disrupt New York 2016, has closed a $1.9 million Series A round to expand its services in its native South America.

The round was led by China-based Huiyin Blockchain Venture with participation from existing investors Digital Currency Group, Boost VC and Draper VC. The company was founded in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in 2014, and previously raised undisclosed seed funding.

As part of the news, BitPagos is also renaming itself to Ripio, which means gravel in Spanish. That’s also the name of its consumer credit product, which enables those with limited banking history to get credit through the use of its consumer wallet service. CEO Sebastian Serrano (pictured at the top) told TechCrunch that the name is better suited for running a consumer business — it’s also more symbolic.

“I grew up in Choele Choel, Rio Negro in the Patagonia region. Most roads there are made of Ripio,” he explained. “Ripio is used in the country to open roads, and we are opening roads for financial inclusion.”

Source: TechCrunch (link opens in a new window)

Categories
Uncategorized
Tags
digital payments, financial inclusion