How to buy USDT

Buying USDT with Mercado Pago on P2P: a practical guide

How to pay for USDT with a Mercado Pago account on P2P marketplaces, what to put in the transfer reference, how to spot fake screenshots, and depositing to Sky Trade.

By Sky Trade editorial teamUpdated November 5, 20265 min read

Mercado Pago is a digital wallet used widely in Latin America, including Argentina, Mexico and Brazil. In this guide it serves as the payment method on a P2P marketplace: you send money from your Mercado Pago account to a seller, and the marketplace releases the seller's USDT to you from escrow. This guide covers the parts that are specific to paying with a wallet like this.

P2P platforms and Mercado Pago each have their own terms, limits, fees and identity verification. Check them in the apps themselves; this page describes the process only in general terms.

How the flow looks

On a P2P marketplace, choose to buy USDT, set your local currency and select Mercado Pago as the payment method.
Pick a seller with a solid history — many completed orders, a high completion rate, sensible terms in the ad.
Open the order. The seller's USDT is locked in escrow, and the order shows where to send the money.
Pay from your own Mercado Pago account.
Mark the order as paid once the transfer is complete.
The seller confirms, and the USDT is released to your account on the marketplace.

Getting the transfer details right

Depending on the country, the order may show the seller's Mercado Pago account details in different forms. In Argentina, for example, transfers often use a CVU or an alias; in Mexico, a CLABE number is common. Whatever the format:

Check the name. Before you confirm, Mercado Pago normally displays the account holder's name. It should match the seller's verified name on the order.
Send the exact amount shown in the order, in one transfer. Splitting it up or rounding creates confusion in disputes.
Use your own account. Paying from a relative's or friend's account usually breaks the marketplace's rules and can get the order cancelled.

What to write in the reference

Many transfers have an optional reference or concept field. Follow the P2P platform's rules for it — they often say exactly what may or may not be written. Be suspicious of a seller who dictates a specific phrase, such as "payment for a phone" or an invoice number. A misleading reference can later be used against you in a dispute, or make your transfer look like a purchase of goods you never received.

If the ad's terms and the platform's rules disagree, the platform's rules win. A seller can't override them.

Fake transfer screenshots

Screenshots of a "completed transfer" are easy to edit, and P2P scammers use them in both directions.

When you pay: a seller may claim they didn't receive anything and send you a screenshot of an "empty" history. Don't resend money — open an appeal and upload your own proof.
When someone pays you (for example, an offered "refund"): check your Mercado Pago activity in the app. A screenshot is not money.
Pressure tactics: "Your payment was blocked, send it again and I will return the first one" is a common script. Don't pay twice; use the platform's support.

Disputes and appeals

If the seller doesn't release the USDT after you paid, write in the order chat first and wait a reasonable time. Then open an appeal inside the order. The platform's support reviews the chat and the proof of payment, which is why everything should happen in that chat and nowhere else. Don't cancel an order you have paid; cancelling returns the USDT to the seller.

Depositing the USDT to Sky Trade

Open the Wallet in Sky Trade and create a USDT deposit.
Choose a network the marketplace can withdraw on. BEP-20 (BNB Chain), TRC-20 (Tron) and TON are suggested; minimums are $10 on most networks and $15 on TRC-20.
Copy the address or scan the QR code, and note the exact amount. The deposit is valid for 60 minutes.
Withdraw from the marketplace on the same network, making sure the amount that arrives — after the marketplace's own withdrawal fee — matches the deposit amount.
Wait for the network to confirm. Credit is automatic, usually within minutes; if less arrived, the received amount is credited and you can send the rest to the same address.

Sky Trade has no deposit fee. In the terminal you can display amounts in several currencies (BRL among them), while the balance itself is held in US dollars.

A transfer on a different network from the one you picked will not be credited automatically and may be unrecoverable. And as with any trading, you can lose the full amount of a trade — deposit only what you can afford to lose.

Safety summary

Mark as paid only after you have actually paid.
Keep every message inside the platform's order chat.
No third-party payments and no "refunds" sent outside the order.
The name on the Mercado Pago account you pay from must be yours, and the recipient's must match the seller.

Frequently asked questions

Can I buy USDT directly in Mercado Pago and send it to Sky Trade?

This guide uses Mercado Pago only as a payment method on P2P marketplaces. To deposit to Sky Trade you need USDT that you can withdraw to an external address on a supported network.

Why does the seller's name have to match?

A mismatch often means the money is going to a third party, a common setup for fraud and frozen accounts. If the names differ, don't pay.

What if my Mercado Pago transfer is delayed?

Tell the seller in the order chat and keep your proof. If the order is about to expire or the seller doesn't respond, open an appeal instead of cancelling.

Can I pay for someone else's order from my Mercado Pago account?

No. P2P platforms expect the payer's name to match the account that placed the order.