Argentina: Rise in QR payment for fuel retailing through MercadoPago

The company registered a 5% growth in the presence in different service stations during the last three months.

Payment via QR code is a trend that arrived a few years ago in Latin America and is here to stay. The main company that inaugurated this service and capitalizes on its popularity in Argentina is MercadoPago. Recently, the firm recorded a significant expansion in the energy sector to the point of reaching more than half of the country's gas stations.

"In the last three months, the number of operators where payments can be made with QR grew by 5%, while transactions grew by 13% and invoicing increased by another 11%, with a total of 130,000 new users paying in the sector," commented Francisco Bouzas, Sr. Manager of MercadoPago in an interview with the Argentinian site Surtidores.

The company's representative pointed out that money on account is the payment method most used by customers. It is the least expensive service for the station owner and is very dynamic due to its immediate accreditation. This is also complemented by the possibility of providing cash out services by integrating the software with the stations' services.

Another important fact is that the Central Bank of Argentina, the entity that controls the monetary flow and transaction processes in the country, promoted the Transferenciass 3.0 regulation, which requires all QR readers to accept all electronic wallets. Likewise, the company confirmed that they process payments from all of them as well as from banking entities.

"All service stations will be able to accept this new means of payment automatically, without development or additional configurations, at the lowest cost in the market and in the simplest way with a single reconciliation," concluded Bouzas.