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Ola pessoal!
Today’s episode is with John Delaney, co-founder and CEO of Crown - which has quickly become a major player in a Brazilian stablecoin market that is entering a new phase of maturity.
John shares how Crown is solving what he identifies as the most acute problem in Brazil’s digital asset ecosystem: enabling institutional players to capture yield in a high interest rate environment.
The Numbers Speak for Themselves
Crown has achieved remarkable traction since launching BRLV, which is now the largest emerging market stablecoin with over 360 million BRL in circulation. The company recently closed a $13 million Series A round led by Paradigm.
But what makes Crown’s approach distinctive isn’t just the capital raised or volumes achieved - it’s the architectural decisions that underpin the product.
Why Brazil? Why Now?
Delaney, a former Cleary Gottlieb lawyer who worked on structured finance deals including Nubank’s early credit card funding, brings deep expertise across American and Brazilian financial markets to the project.
His thesis centers on three key attributes that make Brazil an ideal stablecoin market:
A trillion-dollar-plus M2 money supply
A crypto-friendly regulatory environment fostered by the Central Bank
Positive real interest rates that significantly outpace inflation
The Yield Generation Advantage
Unlike traditional stablecoin models where issuers retain all interest income generated by reserve assets, BRLV shares yield with institutional partners at what Delaney describes as “a very deep architectural level.”
This design choice directly addresses the opportunity cost institutional players face when holding stablecoins in high-yield environments, a problem that doesn’t exist to the same degree in low-rate markets like the US or Europe.
Security First
Beyond yield generation, Crown has implemented what may be the most robust security structure in the stablecoin industry globally. BRLV features a bankruptcy-remote reserve holding combined with perfected legal guarantees, ensuring that token holders maintain claims on underlying assets even if Crown itself fails.
This represents the first implementation of security protections outlined in frameworks like the Genius Act.
An Ambitious Vision
Delaney’s long-term target: one trillion BRL in circulation within ten years, representing high single-digit percentage of Brazil’s M2 money supply. He views the stablecoin market as winner-take-all, or at minimum winner-take-most, drawing parallels to the USDT/USDC duopoly.
As Brazil’s stablecoin market enters a new phase of maturity, Crown’s rapid ascent offers important lessons for how institutional-grade infrastructure is being built in emerging markets.
You can connect with John on Linkedin.
Key Takeaways:
✓ Native yield architecture – BRLV enables institutional holders to capture yield from Brazil’s high interest rate environment
✓ Bankruptcy-remote structure – First global implementation of perfected legal guarantees protecting stablecoin holders
✓ Market opportunity – Brazil’s trillion-dollar M2 money supply and positive real rates create optimal conditions
✓ Institutional focus – Go-to-market strategy prioritizes institutional flows that drive majority of volumes
✓ Ambitious scaling – Target of one trillion BRL circulation within 10 years
Have a great week everyone,
-AWS
Brazil Crypto Report is presented by
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