Bancolombia Group’s digital asset company Wenia is live and in production with the integration of Chainlink Proof of Reserve (PoR) for its COPW stablecoin. This will provide end-to-end transparency on the Peso reserves that back the stablecoin.
Chainlink is a technology platform for cross-chain interoperability and blockchain abstraction. In mid-May, the fintech was part of the SmartNAV DLT pilot with DTCC and 10 banks for mutual fund tokenization.
Chainlink PoR is integrated directly into the stablecoin’s minting function, helping to protect users against the risk of infinite mint attacks where additional COPW is issued without sufficient available reserves. Wenia users can now buy, sell, and convert COPW to bitcoin, Ethereum, MATIC, and USDC.
“This initiative marks a significant milestone in Colombia’s digital asset landscape, highlighting the growing adoption and integration of cryptocurrencies in the country’s financial ecosystem,” said Pablo Arboleda, CEO of Wenia, in a statement. “Onchain Proof of Reserve data is a critical component to digital asset adoption, serving as a stepping stone toward increasing consumer confidence in using stablecoins and other tokenized assets. We chose Chainlink for its industry-leading platform, and we’re excited by the potential of its technology to increase transparency, utility, and accessibility for our users now and in the future.”
The Colombian crypto market has experienced substantial growth, particularly in the latter half of 2023, with stablecoins making up 31% of crypto acquisitions.
Angela Walker, global head of Banking and Capital Markets at Chainlink Labs, said in a statement: “As the adoption of digital cash grows, Chainlink’s essential tokenized asset infrastructure is critical for enhancing transparency, broadening utility, and increasing greater levels of crypto accessibility in Latin America.”
In addition to providing onchain PoR data feeds, the collaboration is expected to expand to include Chainlink Price Feeds for accurate, reliable market data and CCIP for secure cross-chain interoperability.