A leading payments industry news source for more than 17 years. Glenbrook curates the news and keeps you abreast of the important daily headlines in payments.

Search Payments News

October 20, 2023

On the web

July 19, 2023

On the web

June 22, 2023

On the web

July 8, 2022

On the web

Argentina Paves the Way for Open Banking

Fintech News

“In Argentina, the central bank is paving the way for open banking, introducing new regulation and initiatives to encourage digital payments and enable interoperability. New measures for regulating virtual wallets were adopted in May 2022 by the board of Banco Central de la República Argentina, the country’s central bank. The rule mandates banks, fintechs, payment services providers and digital wallet administrators to provide their customers with the ability to link other accounts. This ultimately means that customers will be able to carry out payments and transfers through one particular digital wallet but using funds deposited in another account.”

August 16, 2021

On the web

Argentine Fintech Ualá Lands $350M at a $2.45B Valuation in SoftBank, Tencent-led Round

TechCrunch

“The dollars keep flowing into Latin America. Today, Argentine personal finance management app Ualá announced it has raised $350 million in a Series D round at a post-money valuation of $2.45 billion…Today, Ualá says it has developed “a complete financial ecosystem,” including universal accounts, a global Mastercard card, bill payment options, investment products, personal loans, installments (BNPL) and insurance. It has also launched merchant acquiring, Ualá Bis, a solution for entrepreneurs and merchants that allows selling through a payment link or mobile point-of-sales (mPOS).”

June 11, 2021

On the web

Claro Argentina partners with DOCOMO Digital to Boost Mobile Payments  | Billing & Payments

Telemedia Online

“Claro Argentina, a leading mobile phone operator and part of the América Móvil group, has teamed up with DOCOMO Digital, one of the leading integrators of digital app stores, to facilitate the purchase of applications and content with direct carrier billing (DCB), within the Samsung Galaxy Store, using a Claro’s pre-paid or post-paid accounts. Thanks to this integration, Claro offers its subscribers the possibility to purchase digital services (applications, games, etc.) on theSamsung Galaxy Store via their top-up balance (in the case of prepaid users) or via billing on the phone receipt as an additional charge (in the case of postpaid users), quickly and easily. Digital content consumption has increased and Claro is committed to simplifying the associated transactions.”

December 7, 2020

On the web

The BCRA enables new forms of payment with transfers from today

Explica

“The first stage of the national system of Payment with Transfer 3.0, the initiative launched by the Central Bank of the Argentine Republic (BCRA), will begin operating this Monday in 50,000 shops as a tool that will integrate all electronic wallets and banking applications, to boost the digital payments and promote a greater financial inclusion in the country.  3.0 transfers will allow, within one year, that any business or company in the country can charge for its services through payments made with the cell phone, with immediate accreditation and with the lowest commission in the market, which will allow building a open and universal digital payments ecosystem.”

December 4, 2020

On the web

Argentine Fintech Ualá Takes Mobile Payments to Small Businesses

Bloomberg (paywall)

“Argentina’s Ualá, the mobile payments company backed by heavyweight investors including George Soros, Steve Cohen and Tencent Holdings Ltd, is expanding into merchant services in Argentina. The company is launching Thursday a variety of services that cater for the first time to small businesses, said Ualá’s founder and chief executive officer, Pierpaolo Barbieri. Ualá will start offering mobile point-of-sales (mPOS) units, looking to deploy 100,000 by the end of 2021, as well as allowing small companies to charge via payment links.”

October 20, 2020

On the wires

Worldpay from FIS Expands Operations in Argentina with Domestic Acquiring Capability

FIS ® (NYSE: FIS) today announced the latest expansion of its global footprint in the Latin American market by securing domestic card scheme acquiring licenses in Argentina. With the ability to offer local merchants in-country payment processing, Argentine sellers will have access to a broader set of Worldpay from FIS merchant solutions products and services for online commerce.”

July 22, 2020

On the web

Banks in Argentina Unite to Launch Fintech App Dimo Vs Mercado Pago

Contxto

“It’s no secret that marketplace giant Mercado Libre has been busy scaling its logistics operations and partaking in a large share of Latin America’s e-commerce. In the process, its fintech arm, Mercado Pago , has also been growing. Thus, multiple traditional banks have noticed and are taking cards in the matter.  They’ve recently come together to launch Pay Digital, a company in Argentina. This fintech is building an e-wallet called “ Dimo ” (Dinero Móvil) that will compete with Mercado Pago and even fintechs. Pay Digital also already has over 20 public and private banks registered to connect with its system.”

April 23, 2019

On the web

Tencent Joins Soros and Cohen With Stake in Agentina’s Uala

Bloomberg

“Chinese Internet giant Tencent Holdings Ltd . is taking a stake in Argentina’s mobile payments app Uala, adding to previous investments by Goldman Sachs and billionaires George Soros and Steve Cohen.    The equity investment will be used to continue developing the fintech company in South America’s second-largest economy, according to founder and CEO Pierpaolo Barbieri. The venture is one of Tencent’s few in Latin America, after it announced a $90 million investment in Brazil’s Nubank last October.  Uala has issued more than 500,000 prepaid cards from October 2017 to December 2018, as part of a bet on long-term growth in a country in which less than half the population has a bank account. The company is launching an app redesign Wednesday and looks to begin lending through its mobile app this year.”

Payments News

Give us your email address or link to our RSS feed and we’ll push the daily Payments News headlines to you.

Glenbrook Payments Boot camp®

Register for the next Glenbrook Payments Boot Camp®

An intensive and comprehensive overview of the payments industry.

Train your Team

Customized, private Payments Boot Camps tailored to meet your team’s unique needs.

OnDemand Modules

Recorded, one-hour videos covering a broad array of payments concepts.

Glenbrook Press

Comprehensive books that detail the systems and innovations shaping the payments industry.