Montevideo, Uruguay. May 2, 2024 — Mercado Libre (NASDAQ: MELI), the leading e-commerce and fintech platform in Latin America, today announced results following a strong financial and operational performance in the first quarter. Net revenue rose 36% in dollars, year-over-year, to hit $4.3 billion, while income from operations rose 29% year-on-year to $528 million. Net income rose 71%, year-over-year, to reach $344 million in the first months of the year.

Martin de los Santos, CFO of Mercado Libre, said: “The start of our 25th anniversary year couldn’t have been more promising. We are very pleased with our first quarter results. As Latin America's largest ecommerce and fintech platform, we are uniquely placed to capitalize on the structural shifts that are transforming the region's commerce and financial services markets. The first quarter is an example of our continued success in seizing these opportunities profitably, with net income up 71% year-over-year to $344 million, driven by excellent results in Brazil and Mexico.”

Mercado Libre’s commerce operations continue to see rising demand and engagement, with unique buyers reaching 53.5 million in the first quarter, a 16% rise year-over-year, and items sold growing 25% year-over-year, with the highlight of Brazil and Mexico expanding 32% and 28% respectively. Gross merchandise Value (GMV) grew strongly at 36% in Brazil and 42% in Mexico year-over-year, in dollars, even against already high comparative figures from the first quarter of 2023. Advances continue to be significant in the logistics operation, with the fulfillment network's penetration surpassing the 50% mark for the first time, reaching 52% this quarter. The Meli+ loyalty program is leading buyers to spend more, increase purchase frequency and shop across a larger number of categories than prior to their membership.

In fintech, monthly active users grew by 37% to reach 49 million, while assets under management grew by 90%. The number of users of MercadoPago’s asset management services rose at an impressive pace of 94% year-over-year, doubling in Argentina and tripling in Mexico. These are clear signs of rising engagement with MercadoPago’s fintech services. The credit portfolio ended the first quarter with $4.4 billion, up 46% year-over-year, with a strong performance from the Mercado Pago credit card in Brazil and Mexico. Non performing loans remained under control thanks to Mercado Libre's  competitive advantage in underwriting.

As Mercado Libre enters its 25th anniversary year and looks ahead to the next 25 years, the solid performance in the first quarter shows the business is in great shape. Brazil and Mexico are both delivering robust growth in commerce and fintech, and the platform sees numerous opportunities for further growth, across the region.

“We are in a position of considerable strength in a region that offers immense opportunities for growth. In commerce, we still see plenty of scope for more buyers, more frequency and more retail to shift online. Meanwhile, in fintech, we see substantial demand for better and simpler financial services, as well as the trend of digitalisation of cash”, Martin de los Santos concluded.

Financial highlights for Q1 2024

Commerce: 

• Net revenue from the commerce business in the first quarter rose 49% in dollars, year-over-year, to reach $2.5 billion.
• Gross merchandise Value (GMV), the total value of merchandise sold, rose 21% in dollars, year-over-year, to reach $11.4 billion.
• Engagement with Meli Delivery Day is ahead of the expectations, which shows it has succeeded in creating a compelling shipping benefit for the loyalty scheme. 
• More than 94% of shipments in the period corresponded to the Mercado Libre's managed network, with 77% of the deliveries made in less than 48 hours.
• The total number of items delivered by the fulfillment network grew by 48% to 196 million. For the first time in this quarter, the fulfillment network penetration surpassed the 50% mark, reaching 52% by growing 8 percentage points year on year.
• Mercado Ads revenue rose 64% year-on-year, in dollars, with the digital advertising business reaching almost 2% of the GMV.

Fintech: 

• The fintech business strategy continued to deliver strong growth in the first quarter. Net revenue from Mercado Pago reached $1.8 billion, up 22% in dollars from the first quarter of 2023. 
• Total payment volume (TPV) rose 35% in dollars, year-over-year, to reach $40.7 billion, while the total number of monthly active users rose 37% to reach 49 million. 
• Total payment transactions (TPN) in the first quarter increased by 56% year-over-year, reaching over 2.4 billion. 
• The acquiring TPV, which represents all payments processed and settled via Mercado Pago, both on marketplace and outside of it (MPOS devices, online payments and QR codes), reached $30.6 billion, an increase of 26% in dollars, year-over-year.
• The total number of insurance policies in the first quarter increased by 133% year-over-year to reach 11.5 million.