Stablecoins are proving to be popular among the unbanked in Mexico. Building on the demand for these services, Chipi Pay, the Mexican-based prefunded stablecoin wallet, has expanded its services in the country, following a partnership with Starknet Foundation, a high-performance Layer 2 scaling solution that brings security, decentralisation, and ultra-low transaction fees to Ethereum.
The new collaboration will see Chipi Pay bridge the gap between traditional finance and the Web3 ecosystem for consumers and merchants and power payments for over 50 million Mexican citizens. Its current offering involves providing an accessible alternative to traditional banking for small firms in Mexico and Latin America, which face payment processing fees between three and five per cent per transaction.
In contrast, Chipi Pay facilitates transactions with negligible fees and faster settlements. Consequently, merchants using Chipi Pay can process transactions without delays. The platform allows payments via QR codes, NFC, and direct transfers.
The underlying crypto technology is abstracted away — most users don’t even realise they are using crypto. This is in large part due to the app’s lack of crypto jargon. This, in addition to the fact that merchants receive funds in fiat currency, makes onboarding simple for first-time users. Users can also enjoy an experience without complex wallet management. Eliminating gas fees and ensuring smooth payments, Chipi Pay acts as a consumer tool and ‘crypto rails’ solution for banks and event providers, disrupting the monopoly of large processors.
Chipi Pay chose Starknet for its negligible transaction fees, enabling cost-effective payments. Starknet Foundation also provided comprehensive resources that transformed their business, from technical support to product incubation, fundraising assistance, and strategic feedback, accelerating both technology and company growth.
Partnering with Starknet
Chipi Pay is led by CEO Carlos Castillo, a former founding CTO of a Y-Combinator-backed company with a proven track record, having raised over $2million in total funding for prior startups.
“Financial services in Mexico need to work for everyone—not just those with access to traditional banking,” said Carlos Castillo, CEO of Chipi Pay.
“By building on Starknet, we’re able to offer a payments solution that is truly built for the people—cheaper, faster, and incredibly easy to use. Once users are on-chain, they can spend on essential services, pay bills, or receive payroll all through Chipi Pay and without the need of traditional banking rails. We are excited to work with the Starknet Foundation to make Web3 payments a reality for millions across Latin America.”
James Strudwick, CEO of the Starknet Foundation
“Starknet was built to power the next generation of financial applications,” said James Strudwick, CEO of the Starknet Foundation. “Chipi Pay is an incredible example of how Web3 can drive real-world impact—offering a solution that’s faster, cheaper, and more inclusive than traditional finance. We are proud to support their vision as they scale across Mexico and beyond.”
With Starknet set to become the first Layer-2 to settle on both Ethereum and Bitcoin, increasing the latter’s utility as part of its mission to make payments more accessible, its commitment to Chipi Pay aligns with its core vision for DeFi.
Making payments simple
Guided by the principle of ‘ease of use,’ Chipi Pay is designed to be 80 per cent simpler than banks and 10x cheaper than payment aggregators in Mexico. Six months post-launch, the average ticket size on the app grew from $1.5 to $32—a x21 jump driven by trust and higher-value use cases like utility payments and mobile plans.
Chipi Pay has secured a major distribution deal, partnering with a CPG distributor to place stablecoin gift cards across 270,000+ mom & pop shops in Mexico. With access to over 65 per cent of the country’s economy, this move will help drive adoption in a network traditionally reliant on prepaid phone cards.
Chipi Pay plans to evolve into a full-service financial platform, expanding beyond payments to offer micro-loans and yield-generating investments, positioning itself as a competitive alternative to Mexico’s banking platforms. Expansion plans include deeper penetration into Latin America and emerging markets like India.
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