LATAM fintech company Geopagos has added Paraguay as the 16th country in which it will operate in the region. This is part of an aggressive expansion plan that has been exponential in recent years and has been supported since the second half of 2022 by a first investment round of $35 million from US fund Riverwood Capital.
With ten years of experience, Geopagos has focused mainly on markets such as Chile, where it was established in 2021 as a partner of Banco Estado, as well as Brazil, Mexico, Colombia, Peru, Central America, the Caribbean, Uruguay, and Argentina. In Paraguay, it goes hand in hand with Banco Itaú, with the joint development of the Pik payment platform so that entrepreneurs, SMEs and professionals can accept payments faster, more securely and with any card.
Agustín Parodi, Chief Business Officer of Geopagos, explains, “Paraguay is a market with great growth potential. According to the latest report from a local payment service provider, the penetration of digital transactions is 59%. In comparison, the share of cash payments is 41%, so digitalization is becoming increasingly prevalent.”
He adds that “in 2022, 29.1 million credit card transactions were recorded, of which just over 90% were POS purchases. In contrast, only 21.5 million plastic card transactions were made in 2021, split between POS and Internet purchases, a change of about 35% from the previous year.” The Pik payment acceptance solution aims to increase users’ sales so they can continue growing. It includes end-to-end development (mPOS, dashboard, back office and onboarding) and full integration with Bancard, the local acquirer. In this way, it is possible to open a digital account. Regarding Itaú, Parodi comments, “It is a great challenge to work with a bank of this size, which is committed to providing payment acceptance solutions that allow it to capture and digitize unbanked users. We are convinced that Pik is an excellent product to revolutionize the market. Carolina Dos Santos Batista, Head of Market Disruption of Pik at Itaú, points out that “this payment acceptance solution, which includes the opening of a digital account and the delivery of the POS device to the home, will be a great support for companies and entrepreneurs to increase their sales and growth.”
In Latin America, Geopagos is known for being the first infrastructure to offer an omnichannel value proposition, developing technology that allows customers to scale or expand their payment acceptance business, transforming millions of people’s buying and selling experience. Geopagos was founded in 2013 and had significant clients such as Santander, BBVA, Fiserv, BAC Credomatic, Banco Estado de Chile.