SAO PAULO, Aug 21 (Reuters) – Latin American corporate
card provider Clara has launched cross-border transactions, the
company announced on Monday, expecting to move up to $100
million by the end of the year.
Through the service, clients can now pay bills in major
foreign currencies, Clara said in a statement.
The international transfers will first launch in Mexico,
where Clara was founded, though the firm plans to later make the
service available in Colombia and Brazil, it told Reuters,
without giving a timeframe.
The $100 million expected in cross-border payments through
the end of the year is on top of Clara’s domestic transactions
in Mexico, which the company told Reuters totaled nearly 8.5
billion Mexican pesos ($499.58 million) in the first half of the
year.
Customers in Mexico will be charged in pesos while the
beneficiary will receive payment in their chosen destination
currency, the firm said.
The corporate credit provider, which also offers expense
management products, said its decision to launch in Mexico was
in part to capitalize on the country’s so-called nearshoring
boom as U.S. multinationals move operations to the country to
bring production closer to customers.
Clients involved in nearshoring requested the service, as
they need to acquire services and materials from various parts
of the world, requiring payments in different currencies, Clara
said.
Earlier this month, Clara announced it was moving its
headquarters from Mexico to Brazil, betting on the South
American country becoming its largest market by 2024.
Half of the company’s leadership is already based in Brazil,
Clara said on Monday.
($1 = 17.0143 Mexican pesos)
(Reporting by Kylie Madry; Editing by Conor Humphries and
Cynthia Osterman)
