Latin American Crypto Exchange Ripio Launches Argentine Peso Stablecoin ‘wARS’

Ripio, a Latin American crypto exchange with more than 25 million users, has launched a new stablecoin pegged to the Argentine peso.

The token, called wARS, is now live on Ethereum, Coinbase’s Base, and World Chain, local news outlet La Nacion reports.

The peso-backed token allows users to send and receive funds around the world, at any time, without using banks or converting to U.S. dollars. Its launch comes as Javier Milei’s government brought inflation in the country down from 292% in April of last year to now stand at 31.8%.

Ripio says it plans to launch similar stablecoins for other Latin American currencies. That could eventually allow cross-border payments in local money across the region, something today usually requires U.S. dollars or costly intermediaries.

Stablecoins are already popular in Argentina and Brazil, where inflation and tight currency controls push people to seek more stable stores of value.

The launch of wARS follows Ripio’s earlier release of a tokenized version of a sovereign bond, and adds to the broader push toward bringing real-world assets like fiat currencies and securities onto blockchain rails.