AstroPay, the online payment solution of choice for millions of users worldwide, has announced the launch of a Visa prepaid card in Peru issued by Tebca Perú, that will allow users to make purchases at any e-commerce store that accepts Visa. The launch is part of the company’s growth plans and ambition to empower customers – especially those without a bank account – to access the digital economy and engage in online transactions.

AstroPay launched the Visa debit card issued by Tebca Perú, for their existing and new users offering a very simple, secure, and convenient experience to enter the financial system. They will be able to activate and use the prepaid card instantly without any charge, pay in any online merchant that accepts Visa, and the card also comes with attractive benefits including cashback.

Peru is a key target for AstroPay due to the rapid growth and developments in their payments industry. There is also a wide acceptance of Visa across the country. The Visa prepaid card will allow users to shop on any site that accepts VISA across the globe and users will be able to pay in both American dollars and Peruvian Soles.

AstroPay plans to expand its prepaid card product across a range of territories, having previously launched this product in the UK, now Peru – their next objective will be to expand across the rest of Latin America, targeting Brazil, Mexico, and Argentina.

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Guillermo Dotta, CTO & Chief Product Officer of AstroPay, said: “It is a great time for AstroPay to strengthen its position as a key player in Peru’s growing payments industry. Standing on our existing operations in the country, we are not only offering our existing and new users a simpler experience with their finances but also creating a frictionless experience for unbanked customers looking to enter the financial system. This launch is part of our continuous effort to deliver simple, safe and convenient solutions tailored to meet the needs of our loyal customers in all Latin America.”

Gilberto Chaparro, General Manager for Visa Peru, said: “At Visa, we work with fintechs around the world to transform the digital payments industry and offer more and more people and businesses the benefits of digitalization. We celebrate our work with AstroPay, with whom we developed a solution that will enable more Peruvians to have access to fast, secure and convenient payments. Likewise, the creation and implementation of innovative payment solutions, hand in hand with fintechs, allows us to contribute to the development of a more inclusive economy in the country.”

Huobi Global, one of the world’s leading cryptocurrency exchanges, has partnered with AstroPay, the online payment solution of choice for millions of users worldwide, to provide fiat-to-crypto payment services for Huobi Global users in Latin America.

Through the partnership, AstroPay will facilitate a secure payment platform that will enable traders on Huobi Global to seamlessly purchase crypto assets using fiat currency.

“Latin America lays claim to a young and vibrant population brimming with enthusiasm for the crypto industry, and we have observed a significant increase in the number of new Huobi Global users from this region. Our collaboration with AstroPay underscores our goal to make the purchase and trading of digital assets a secure, convenient and enjoyable experience for everyone,” Lily Zhang, Chief Financial Officer of Huobi Global, said.

“AstroPay is renowned for its expertise in providing payment services for companies looking to target the diverse Latin American market. Huobi Global users will be able to purchase and sell their crypto assets in local currencies, which will ultimately lead to higher trading volumes and greater engagement within the cryptocurrency sector,” Sara Rita, Chief Commercial Officer of AstroPay, said.

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Huobi Global’s partnership with AstroPay will see the exchange provide users in Latin America with fiat to crypto payment options through AstroPay digital wallet. Huobi Global’s users in the region will be able to purchase and subsequently trade through a variety of payment methods including credit and debit cards, bank transfers, and local alternative options, such as Pix in Brazil and SPEI in Mexico.

AstroPay, the online payment solution of choice for over five million users in the world, has strengthened its digital payment offering in Brazil by delivering the smoothest user journey via the local payment method Pix.

AstroPay has enabled payments via Pix since it was launched in October 2020 amidst the Covid-19 pandemic. Created and managed by the Central Bank of Brazil, Pix’s payments volume already makes up more than 80% of debit and credit card transactions in Brazil.

AstroPay will be offering two direct ways to pay with Pix to provide faster, streamlined, and convenient payments for both merchants and users. This includes the Pix native view and Software Developer Kit (SDK) for merchants. The Pix native view directs the user to AstroPay’s checkout straight from the merchant’s site, while the Pix QR code will be shown directly, avoiding users from being redirected to Pix’s site. This option is available to all merchants and has already improved their sales conversion rate by 7% to 15%. The new flow is available to all merchants that have AstroPay’s solution integrated via SDK, which will bring the Pix QR to the merchant’s cashier.

Mikael Lijtenstein, CEO of AstroPay, said: “As an agile fintech company, we strive to provide our users and merchants with the best payment experience and constantly invest in technology to adapt to their needs. This new capability will help merchants to better connect with their users who prefer to pay with Pix, which has revolutionised the payments industry in Brazil. By utilising AstroPay wallet, users will experience quicker and frictionless payment journey with a payment method of their choice.”

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With this new capability, AstroPay continues to bolster its position as a leading digital payment solution provider in Brazil with more than 200 merchants and 1.5 million users in that market alone.