SAO PAULO (Reuters) -Latin America's largest e-commerce platform MercadoLibre ( MELI ) announced on Monday the launch of a new business-to-business (B2B) unit, targeting corporate clients as it seeks to expand beyond its traditional consumer market.

WHY IT'S IMPORTANT

The move positions MercadoLibre ( MELI ) to capture a share of the B2B e-commerce market, which is estimated to be four times larger than the global business-to-consumer e-commerce market by volumes sold.

BY THE NUMBERS

The company said there are over 4 million users already enabled for wholesale purchases across Latin America since it began testing the unit a year ago.

The unit is launching in Brazil, Argentina, Mexico and Chile.

KEY QUOTES

"This market is strategic for the business, as it is characterized by higher average tickets, recurring purchases, larger orders and lower return rates," MercadoLibre ( MELI ) said in a statement.