Brazilian Investment Bank BTG Pactual Unveils Dollar-Backed Stablecoin

BTG Pactual, one of Latin America's largest investment banks, has introduced a dollar-backed stablecoin through its crypto platform, Mynt.

The stablecoin, BTG Dol, is the world's first dollar-backed stablecoin issued by a bank, BTG Pactual said in an announcement on Tuesday.

The São Paulo, Brazil-based bank said it is enabling clients to "dollarize part of their equity in a simple, efficient and secure manner."

BTG Dol is available for purchase starting from 100 real ($20) in the bank's crypto app Mynt, which it rolled out in 2021 and which now supports 22 cryptocurrencies.

Unlike cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin and ether, stablecoins are pegged to traditional financial assets like fiat currencies – usually the U.S. dollar. They allow investors and traders to keep their money in the digital asset ecosystem without being completely exposed to the volatility that are habitual with most cryptocurrencies.

The market capitalization of stablecoins sits at around $133 billion, with a 24 hour trading volume of nearly $39 billion, according to data by CoinMarketCap.

The largest stablecoins including USDT and USDC are issued by private companies and as such have been subjected to increasing regulatory scrutiny, particularly since the collapse of algorithmic stablecoin UST last year.

Read more: Can Banks Issue Stablecoins?