Virtual wallets: which are the most used in Argentina and what benefits does each one offer you

The pandemic exponentially boosted electronic payments. In this context, virtual wallets have become a highly demanded tool by users who seek to concentrate in one application the different bank accounts, cards and to be able to transfer money in a more agile way.

As an example, and to graph the impact on the sector, the data provided to iProUP by Coelsa, one of those in charge of payment compensation, is more than eloquent: the use of these apps grew 2,000% in the last two years .

"Electronic wallets offer the possibility of carrying out financial operations, whether or not you have a bank account", defines iProUP Francisco Chaves del Valle, manager of Institutional Relations of the BKR wallet.

According to the executive, these apps "allow you to receive and send money, pay for services, recharge cell phones, create group 'cows' with your contacts, request technical assistance and make cash withdrawals at ATMs."

Within the universe of available wallets, there are endless possibilities and varieties. Whether from a fintech or a traditional bank, each one has features that distinguish it.

Payment Market

Undoubtedly, the most used wallet in the country belongs to the unicorn commanded by Marcos Galperin, who was a pioneer in Argentina with payments through QR codes three years ago.

"The pandemic accelerated the adoption of electronic payments by up to five years. This made our Mercado Pago ecosystem and capillarity grow from 3.4 to more than 5.4 million users in Argentina," Agustín Onagoity, director of Mercado Pago Wallet.

According to the executive, "confinement promoted what we have been doing for years through different technologies: online payments, POS devices that connect to smartphones and QR codes, which are advancing in the inclusion of millions of people."

From Mercado Pago they highlight that the app covers the complete cycle of transactions, payments, savings and credit, in a safe, fast and agile way. "We are allies of users who are increasingly turning to safer options so as not to handle cash, such as payments with QR, payment links, sending money, and now, also withdrawing money with QR," Onagoity details.

Among the most used tools, the executive highlights "sending money between people with the 'Friends' center of the app, which is used to divide bills, gifts, etc."

"Today, almost 3 million people already invest the balance of their Mercado Pago digital account, through a common investment fund managed by BIND Banco Industrial. The money is always available to make payments and withdraw cash with QR, pay services and transfer funds," adds Onagoity.

wala

The second most downloaded wallet in the country is Ualá, with more than 3 million users who use its virtual account and prepaid card, among other services.

"The Ualá ecosystem includes a Mastercard card and an app that offers the possibility of sending and receiving money to any bank account (CBU) or virtual account (CVU), withdrawing cash at ATMs, quoting consumption and paying for services," they list from Ualá.

The company recently focused on a solution for businesses, called Ualá Bis, which, according to what they indicate, "allows payment through a payment link and mPOS. It is also possible to request loans, invest in a common fund and pay for exclusive insurance and assistance contracted to via Willis Towers Watson".

As a result of the pandemic, users of Ualá doubled: at the beginning of 2020 they had issued 1.5 million plastics. "36% of the virtual accounts in Argentina belong to Ualá users", the company highlights.

During the last year, marked by the pandemic, the average number of transactions per user increased 30%. Besides:

MODE

Modo was presented as "the virtual wallet of banks". Indeed, it brings together more than 35 traditional financial entities (public, private and cooperative), which formed the Play Digital consortium to compete strongly in the world of digital money.

As indicated by the firm, MODO was born with the aim of "simplifying the daily use of money, eliminating cash and reducing the use of plastic cards".

In addition, they emphasize that "it can be used from its independent app or from the banking applications in which it is integrated". In this way, the user can send or request money to any of their cell phone contacts, without having to have a CBU or alias, and pay with a QR code in authorized stores.

"Thus, you can enjoy all the benefits that banks offer, such as discounts, promotions, installments, among others," they point out. In addition, the customer can associate all their payment methods and link all their bank accounts to check their available balances and keep better control of their consumption from a single screen.

The application already has almost 2 million users who use the independent app or from their entity's mobile banking. In addition, more than 450,000 businesses are enabled to accept payments through this wallet.

ValePEI

Link's application uses Immediate Electronic Payment (PEI). All transactions are made through debits from bank accounts of any entity in the financial system. That is, credit cards cannot be added.

Thus, the application, which has more than 1 million users who can make payments and send money instantly, "in a simple, secure and free way." It is also possible to pay taxes and services, in addition to making payments using QR codes.

Juan Manuel de la Vega, Red Link Marketing Manager, assures iProUP that "the use of the app grew exponentially since the beginning of the quarantine, and from then until today, with a transactional increase of almost 300%".

De la Vega points out that "they have more than a million downloads and a high rating in the app stores, which leaves us in a very interesting position facing the next challenges. Today a user performs 40 operations on our platform."

ID account

That of Banco Provincia has more than 3.2 million users and allows you to make transfers, send and receive money (even to cell phone contacts), buy in stores, pay taxes and services, and recharge your cell phone or transport cards .

It also makes it possible to withdraw money at Red Link Cash Point ATMs without the need to have a debit card and without commissions. From the entity they highlight that only in May 6.1 million operations were registered through the DNI Account. In addition, clients made:

BNA+

Like DNI Account, Banco Nación's virtual wallet allows you to obtain an account and carry out various operations, among which the following stand out:

"Today we have more than 1.7 million users. Many people who were not users of digital banking found in BNA+ a tailored service to generate a different contact with the entity and avoid face-to-face", they remark to iProUP from the entity. In addition, it already has 2.7 million downloads and 2.3 million Argentines have onboarded.

On the other hand, the BNA application concentrates almost a quarter of all payments with QR that are made through MODO, in which it holds 11% of all users who use the bank wallet.

Orange X

Another of the most used wallets by Argentines is Naranja X, which recently migrated its accounts with CVU to CBU and already has more than 1 million users throughout the country.

"Among the most valued functionalities, the possibility of having a completely free account and a Visa prepaid card stands out, an innovative product, 100% free, without issuance or maintenance costs, and accessible to anyone over 13 years of age with an Argentine ID. ", stand out from the company.

According to the firm, this plastic "has contactless technology and works with the available balance in the Naranja X account to make payments in any physical store and online store that accepts Visa, in Argentina and in the world. In addition, it allows adding automatic debits , pay subscriptions online and withdraw money in cash at any ATM or branch of Naranja X".

In addition, the company offers Toque, a collection device for entrepreneurs and self-employed, and already has more than 100,000 users who use it. In addition, Naranja X surpassed 225,000 businesses adhering to promotions with the Naranja X card throughout the country.

On the other hand, Naranja, the main card issuer in the country, merged into Naranja X, so that more than 5 million users interact with the Naranja X ecosystem through an account, credit and debit cards, loans, insurance, travel and collection solutions Touch.

BIMO

Bimo was launched last year as part of a joint venture between Clarín 365 and Prisma Medios de Pago to combine the best of both: the numerous offers and the connection with the banking and payment system.

From the company they assure that the wallet makes it possible to "pay services and taxes, recharge and buy smoothly, taking advantage of the benefits of the 365 card and accumulating them with bank promotions."

From the app it is possible to pay with the QR code at the participating points of sale and as an extra service the "promotions recommender" stands out, which orders the user's cards according to the percentage of discount available in the store.

ank

Like Bimo and MODO, ank is focused on users who are inside the financial system and makes it possible to send money between people in a simpler way, "without keys, coordinate cards or tokens".

Users can link their bank accounts to the app and instantly transfer from their banks to any bank account or virtual wallet.

In addition, if the recipient uses ank, it will only be enough to enter their phone number or email, without the need for CBU or aliases. Thus, the app proposes transfers as if a WhatsApp message were sent.

The banking strategy

The agility to transfer or make payments boosted the demand of companies in the financial sector to meet the growing demand of users.

"Banks have been working on digital transformation for years, what has changed is speed," Germán Rama, VP of Product at Inforcorp, tells iProUP, a firm that offers an intelligent omnichannel platform for entities to modernize their processes.

According to the executive, "like all items, they had to rethink strategies with the pandemic: even the most conservative bank was at least aware of the risk of not having started it." In addition, when detailing which functions are most demanded by clients, both banks and fintech, Rama points out: "It depends on the niche that the application is targeting."

"Some are implementing connected wallets to offer payments on gaming networks such as Xbox 360, Playstation Network; Apple, Google Play or Netflix. They target teenagers from middle or high income families, in which parents fund their children's wallets so that they buy digital products, avoiding sharing the credit card".

Thus, the territory in which fintech became strong already has several success stories in traditional banking. Digital money is becoming strong and the customer seeks to pay quickly and with the cell phone, without having to carry all their cards.