Bitfinex expands Latin America presence with investment in Chilean “crypto bank” OrionX

Bitfinex, a leading digital asset trading platform, has announced a new investment in Orionx, a top cryptocurrency exchange in Chile.

A joint press release by the two firms noted that the investment is part of a broader effort to promote financial freedom and inclusion in Latin America.

OrionX, founded in 2017, has also grown into South America’s first “crypto bank” and offers a wide array of crypto-related services. Bitfinex, meanwhile, is one of the oldest crypto exchanges in the industry.

Bitfinex looks to expand in Latin America

Bitfinex’s investment in OrionX comes at a time when the Chile-based crypto exchange is eyeing expansion into Peru, Colombia and Mexico. According to the platform, entry into these markets will help its goal of surpassing the one million users mark by 2024.

Entry into Chile meanwhile offers Bitfinex an opportunity to grow its presence in the country and across the region.

Paolo Ardoino, CTO at Bitfinex commented:

“We’re excited to collaborate with OrionX as we look to expand our presence in Chile and across Latin America. This represents a major step forward in our efforts to harness the power of Bitcoin and decentralised technology to promote financial freedom and empower businesses that share our values. We look forward to working even more closely with the team at Orionx to support its growth and development going forward.”

Bitfinex will also tap into the deal to support education programs in local universities amid broader expansion on efforts already in place in El Salvador and Paraguay. The exchange secured a Digital Asset Service Provider license in El Salvador in April and sponsored a three-week bootcamp in Paraguay, with this done in collaboration with Penguin Academy. The bootcamp, according to the exchange, targets equipping women with essential coding skills.

Meanwhile, OrionX will tap into Bitfinex’s strong crypto business and network. Key aspects that will benefit the Chilean firm include access to expertise and suite of products including staking and lending.

A recent report by blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis highlighted that Latin America was among the fastest growing crypto markets in the world. Adoption across the region expanded 40% year-on-year in 2022, with an estimated $562 billion worth of crypto inflows.