The study he conducted fintech Latin American Kushki reveals that it is cash usage dropped to 36%while credit cards are positioned as the main means of electronic payment in Latin America, representing 50% e-commerce and also 20% payment, at the point of sale.

Other means of payment such as digital wallets, mobile payments, P2P (person to person) payments and technology contactless (without contact) are gaining strength and have strong growth.

The report called Digital Payment Trends in Latin America 2023which was supported by Americas Market Intelligence, It was presented on February 23, 2023 at the regional level.

“We hope that technological innovation will continue in 2023, and at Kushki we are confident that we will see great advances in terms of interoperability, multi-channel, mobile payments, digital wallets and technology. contactless“, he showed Gabriele Zuliani, Vice President senior of the development of the Kushki market.

During the presentation of this report, the main challenges of interoperability, contactless transactions and transactions between people, through intermediaries, were discussed.

Interoperability (the relationship between data systems) must be improved to allow greater fluidity in transactions, which means more agile and simpler payments. According to the report, in the process new players gained space, challenging the dominant position of banks. In 2023, non-bank and P2P adopters are expected to help develop these elements and provide the solutions merchants demand. “Interoperability calls for the development of neobanks and super applications and enables digital service providers to easily integrate payments into their ecosystems,” said Zuliani.

Depending on the country, there are greater or lesser barriers to acceleration and innovation in the digital payments market, and greater government involvement is needed to promote interoperability. It was thought that it was only a matter of time before the global trend of P2P applications would be present in Ecuador as well.

Meanwhile, technology contactless payment (contactless) It is one of the trends that has become the most widespread in Latin America. These transactions are expected to close in 2023 will represent 35% in the region.

The impact of this technology has contributed to the promotion of card purchases (especially debit cards), cash transfers, speeding up queues at checkouts and preparing Latin America for the use of contactless digital wallets and wearable things. Additionally, he promoted acquisition entities for technology development Tap Phone, which enables contactless payments smart phones and this is already present in Ecuador.

Meanwhile, payments P2P are key to fostering the penetration of financial inclusion. Thanks to its easy access, low cost and inclusiveness, this trend is redefining digital payments, favoring commerce, digitizing cash, generating data and encouraging small businesses to participate in the digital economy for the first time. However, the big challenge of this trend is interoperability.

In conclusion, the study shows that the trends of digital payment methods are in their year record in Latin America, but the challenge is to advance in interoperability.

In Ecuador, e-commerce sales during 2022 were $4,000 million in 2022, an increase of 24% compared to 2021, according to the Ecuadorian Chamber of Electronic Commerce.