Runa announced its entry into Brazil on May 29, 2024, adding 70 Brazilian merchants to a network that the company said then covered 4,000 merchants globally. The expansion gave business customers local options for distributing gift card rewards and other payouts.

The company said customers could convert funds into Brazilian real and deliver value for recipients to spend through its merchant network. Runa promoted the service as a way to lower payout costs and simplify currency conversion, although its announcement did not provide a fee schedule or quantified savings.

The Brazilian options named in the announcement included Extra.com, Havaianas, Carrefour, Fogo de Chao, Nintendo, Pague Menos, Globo+ and McDonald’s. The mix spanned shopping, groceries, restaurants, pharmacy products, gaming and entertainment.

Runa linked the expansion to growth in Brazil’s digital economy. Its announcement cited an estimate of $6.5 billion for the country’s gift card market in 2023 and a forecast of $10.1 billion by 2028. It also referenced an ecommerce forecast exceeding $200 billion by 2026; both forward-looking figures were projections presented in the 2024 announcement.

Employee recognition and customer promotions were among the uses highlighted by the company. Runa described businesses using gift cards to offer employees a choice of rewards, encourage repeat shopping and support digital gifting as more purchasing moves online.

The announcement also considered cross-border disbursements. It cited nearly $5 billion in remittances received by Brazil in 2023 and $2.23 billion sent abroad. Runa described gift cards as an occasional alternative for some cross-border transfers, while explicitly noting that they were not a mainstream remittance method.

For merchant promotions, the company pointed to rewards attached to spending, repeat purchases and selected product ranges. These examples positioned the new Brazilian coverage around business-funded rewards and incentives as well as individual gifting.