Bancolombia launches Wenia exchange and introduces a stablecoin

Bancolombia S.A., a powerhouse in Latin America’s financial sector, has just unveiled its Wenia crypto exchange after more than a decade in the making. This strategic move positions Wenia to take on established players like Binance and Bitso in the region. Adding to its arsenal, the new exchange plans to introduce a stablecoin tied to the Colombian peso.

Juan Carlos Mora, Bancolombia’s president, stated:

“For nearly a decade, we’ve been dedicated to crafting solutions that make it easier to embrace digital assets and blockchain technology. This experience has empowered Bancolombia to quickly respond to significant market changes, like Bitcoin’s adoption in El Salvador, reaffirming our commitment to financial innovation and digital inclusion. We take pride in introducing this new venture, committed to advancing technology for a more accessible and dynamic future”.

This approach aims to bring in about 60,000 users within the first year of launch, thereby contributing to crypto adoption in a country that, according to Chainalysis data, holds the third position in the region. Pablo Arboleda, Wenia’s executive director, underscored the importance of creating a welcoming space:

“With Wenia’s consolidation (developed with top-tier security standards and industry best practices), our aim is to provide customers with a trustworthy experience and a new avenue for managing their finances. We’re committed to helping individuals engage with the crypto space in a way that’s accessible, inclusive, and efficient”.

Wenia introduces COPW, a stablecoin linked to the Colombian peso. The goal is to promote savings in national currency through digital assets; users can deposit their pesos, which are then converted to COPW. Additionally, Wenia supports BTC, ETH, USDC, and MATIC.

The platform’s requirements are simple: users must be legal adults, residents of Colombia, and have Colombian nationality. If these criteria are met, they can join the waiting list for registration, as the website is not yet offering services.

“Wenia will serve as a platform for individuals to purchase, convert, send, and receive digital assets. Additionally, it will introduce COPW, a stablecoin pegged 1:1 to the Colombian peso”.

- Bancolombia Group.

There’s an interesting post by lawyer Diego Beltrán Ávila on LinkedIn (the current CEO of GroupLegalTic). According to Ávila, although Wenia is an initiative of the Bancolombia Group, it’s based in Bermuda:

“Wenia is an initiative of the Bancolombia Group, yet it operates as a fully independent company. This means that any disputes or claims will be addressed directly with Wenia, not Bancolombia, before Bermuda courts. However, users’ trust comes from the banking entity who devised the project”.

Last week, we ran a news story discussing the Hispanic nations’ role in digitalization: Citigroup Inc. published a report on Latin American countries making substantial progress in this area. While Chile and Brazil were the biggest highlighted countries in the study, Argentina, Mexico, and Colombia were also featured in the discussion.

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