Cashless Wave Sweeps Latin America Amid Mobile, FinTech Boom

Latin America is undergoing a dramatic shift in how money moves. But it isn’t traditional financial institutions that are leading the charge. Instead, mobile wallets and real-time payment systems are rapidly gaining ground across the region, and these 21st century solutions to the age-old problem of money movement are even overtaking banks in the race to digitize transactions.

Data from the PYMNTS Intelligence April 2025 “Embedded Finance Tracker® Series” points to a region not only embracing cashless technology but leading in it.

The report shows that, across Latin America, cash is rapidly losing ground as consumers pivot to digital payments. In 2014, cash made up 67% of in-store transaction value. A decade later, that figure has dropped to 25%. eCommerce transactions have followed a similar trajectory. Digital payments accounted for 48% of online purchase value in 2024, up from just 14% a decade earlier. Their share is expected to climb to 66% by 2030 for eCommerce, and 49% of in-store transaction value.

The change isn’t just theoretical. Point of sale (POS) systems across cities like Bogotá, São Paulo and Buenos Aires now routinely display QR codes instead of card readers, and smartphone-tap payments are replacing the rustle of bills.

Latin America’s move away from cash isn’t just a behavioral shift — it’s a structural one. With strong mobile penetration, rapid FinTech adoption, and a regulatory climate increasingly friendly to innovation, the region is setting a new benchmark for payment modernization.

Mobile Wallets Scale Across Borders

Nowhere is the change from cash to digital and fast in payments more pronounced than in Brazil, where Pix, which was launched by the nation’s central bank in late 2020, has become a dominant force in both retail and business payments.

Pix’s architecture — instant, 24/7 transfers with no fees for individuals — has made it particularly attractive to small businesses and consumers alike. Merchants avoid interchange fees, while consumers avoid the lag and complexity of traditional bank transfers.

The system processed 64 billion transactions in 2024 alone, a 53% increase, and is poised to even surpass credit cards as the country’s primary eCommerce payment method by the end of 2025, potentially accounting for the largest slice of online purchase value in Brazil.

Business-to-business (B2B) payment volume also grew, exceeding 1 trillion reals (approximately $178 billion) in December 2024, marking a 56% increase year over year.

Beyond Brazil, the “Embedded Finance Tracker®” found that other countries are seeing similar patterns. Mobile wallets have become the preferred payment method in Argentina, Colombia and Mexico. In Argentina, Mercado Pago, the financial arm of MercadoLibre, has become a household name and handles billions of pesos in transactions monthly.

Read the report: Digital Developments: Charting Digital Payment Growth in Latin America

These platforms are doing more than processing payments — they’re building ecosystems. In addition to QR-based payments and account-to-account transfers, many wallets now offer merchant services, credit tools, and loyalty programs to capture user stickiness.

For incumbent banks, the shift presents a challenge. Many are scrambling to keep pace, launching their own instant transfer platforms or partnering with FinTechs to avoid disintermediation. But as mobile wallets and real-time systems continue to gain user trust and volume, banks risk losing direct customer relationships — along with transaction fees.

Bank-led card payment volumes, once viewed as untouchable, are steadily eroding. As more consumers and merchants opt for account-to-account payments or QR code-based transactions, interchange margins are being compressed.

Across the Latin American region, central banks and private platforms alike are now racing to set technical standards, address interoperability issues, and scale up infrastructure that can handle surging demand for real-time, mobile-native payments.

This realignment is also creating pressure for acquirers and payment processors to adapt or consolidate. Those unable to integrate with faster payment rails risk irrelevance in a region where real-time, mobile-first payments are becoming the norm.

The implications go beyond consumer spending. Digital payments are becoming embedded in the economic fabric — from B2B invoicing and gig worker payouts to cross-border eCommerce and digital tax compliance.