Pedro Arnt had already helped build one of Latin America’s most valuable tech companies. At Mercado Libre, he joined just months after launch and spent nearly 24 years scaling it into a $100 billion juggernaut. He helped launch Mercado Pago and steer the company through early crises, and learned what it takes to turn early traction into durable infrastructure. So when dLocal—a high-growth payments company operating across 40+ emerging markets—approached him in 2023, he saw an opportunity to do it again.
dLocal had just gone public, expanded into dozens of new markets, and run into the kind of growing pains that come with operating at a global scale. What Arnt saw was a business with real demand and deeper potential—one that needed structure, not reinvention. Its model was simple on the surface: one API, one contract, and access to hundreds of local payment methods. But delivering on that promise meant navigating regulatory flux, currency risk, and fragmented infrastructure—often in markets others avoided.
Arnt brought a methodical approach. Under his leadership, dLocal has expanded into remittances, treasury support, invoicing, and fraud prevention—moves guided less by trend than by merchant friction. His growth playbook prioritizes compounding advantage: earn trust, expand wallet share, and scale across borders. “You don’t really know the answer to a problem,” he’s said, “but you need to keep the right amount of self-doubt—that’s what pushes you to try.”
That pragmatism shapes how he leads. He prioritizes work samples and real-world feedback over interviews. He pushes for speed, but not at the cost of control. “We need to be able to run and chew gum at the same time,” he’s said. At MercadoLibre, he learned to trust instinct but test everything. At dLocal, it’s about layering local expertise with systems that can handle billions in volume—quietly, precisely, and without a hitch.
dLocal isn’t a household name, yet it’s essential to the companies that are: Microsoft, Google, Amazon, and Spotify, to name a few. But Arnt’s goal isn’t visibility, it’s endurance. As the company deepens its presence across Africa, Asia, and Latin America, it’s tackling the complexities most avoid: fragmented systems, volatile currencies, and regulatory minefields. As Arnt puts it, “We don’t like easy. Easy is boring.”
