Two major Argentine banking groups are quietly working on peso-pegged stablecoins aimed at the institutional market despite a ban on banks providing crypto services.
BIND Group, managing over $2 billion in assets, is creating a peso stablecoin through its virtual asset provider, BEN. The project involves a partnership with Circle to facilitate compliant payments and treasury functions for institutional clients.
Meanwhile, Petersen Group is developing a similar stablecoin called DIPE via a subsidiary, supported by Lirium, a crypto-as-a-service firm. This initiative already has a whitepaper and targets streamlined corporate treasury operations.
The Argentine Central Bank prohibited private banks from offering crypto services in 2022, which is why both projects are being pushed by subsidiaries rather than the banks themselves. This workaround allows financial groups to offer programmable money solutions without breaching the rules.
Local stablecoins could expand the use of digital pesos beyond the current dominance of dollar-pegged tokens like USDC and USDT, especially for payment automation and collateralized lending within institutions.
These developments highlight a growing interest in regulated digital currencies within Argentina’s financial sector, signaling that programmable money features are becoming a priority for corporate treasury management.
This information is for educational purposes and does not constitute financial advice.
