While some Kirchnerist sectors attack the Knowledge Economy Law, Mercado Libre exports, invests, creates thousands of jobs, and pays billions of dollars in taxes
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Amid the debate over the tax reform and criticism of the private sector, the case of Mercado Libre stands out as an example of productivity and real contribution to the national economy. According to its own balance sheet and official data submitted to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) of the United States, the company founded by Marcos Galperin not only remains among the largest exporters of services in the country, but also pays 14 times more in taxes than it receives from the benefits of the Knowledge Economy Law (LEC).
During 2024, Mercado Libre paid USD 1.128 billion in its own taxes and withheld USD 2.081 billion from third parties, reaching a total contribution close to USD 3.2 billion. In contrast, the tax benefits from the knowledge economy promotion regime amounted to just USD 67 million in the first nine months of 2025, a 52% increase compared to the same period in 2024, when they totaled USD 44 million.
Mercado Libre.
The company currently employs more than 15,500 people in Argentina, of whom 7,000 belong to the technology area, one of the strategic sectors that the government of Javier Milei seeks to promote as an engine of growth and foreign currency generation. In 2024 alone, Mercado Libre exported services worth over USD 920 million, consolidating the country as a regional hub for innovation and development.
Official data show sustained employment growth since 2018, with an upward curve that accelerated even during the years of deepest recession. The company went from 3,396 employees in 2018 to 15,500 in 2025, according to its internal report.
In its official statement, the firm emphasized that "Mercado Libre accesses the benefits of the Knowledge Economy Law by exporting, investing, and creating jobs in Argentina", and recalled that the regulation "is an effective and transparent tool that allows hundreds of national companies to compete in the global digital talent market".
Comunicado Oficial de Mercado Libre.
The text adds that "the benefits of the LEC are received only by those companies that invest, create jobs, and export from Argentina", and that all audits—carried out by the University of Buenos Aires during the governments of Néstor Kirchner, Cristina Fernández, Mauricio Macri, and Alberto Fernández—confirmed that Mercado Libre complies with every legal requirement.
Meanwhile, sectors linked to IT unionism and the old corporate structure of Kirchnerism, such as the Observatorio del Trabajo Informático (OTI), are trying to promote the idea that the company "abuses" tax benefits. However, hard data show that, far from receiving subsidies, Mercado Libre is one of the country's main taxpayers, sustaining thousands of jobs and generating genuine foreign currency.
The statement concludes with a reflection that sums up the spirit of its defense: "The conversation around the Knowledge Economy Law should focus on the results it generates rather than on already obsolete questions about its compliance."
Founded 26 years ago by Marcos Galperin, now considered the richest man in the country with a net worth of USD 8.3 billion, Mercado Libre is worth more than USD 106 billion on Wall Street and is positioned as one of the most valuable companies in Latin America. Its evolution is also the reflection of a new productive and competitive Argentina, where private initiative and individual merit generate more progress than the old policy of spending.
