Across Latin America, instant payment tools are reshaping not just how people transact, but how they relate to their financial institutions entirely. For FIs, that means customer loyalty isn't a given; instead, it’s earned–or lost–with every engagement. 

Our prior post introduced Gustanomics, the new logic of banking in an app-first attention economy. This framework demonstrates how banks can transform their customer relationships, going beyond traditional ideas of services and products to behave more like consumer brands. Through this approach, banks can win over customers by providing a best-in-class user experience that drives engagement and loyalty–and ultimately becoming an indispensable part of these users’ financial lives. 

One of the most significant changes in Latin American banking in recent years has been the rapid adoption of instant payment technologies. But while some countries’ payment tools have become runaway successes, others have struggled to gain momentum.

We thought we’d look at what the success and drawbacks of LatAm’s most notable instant payment systems can teach us about changing consumer behavior: specifically, how payment providers can use speed and ease coupled with a positive user experience to build lasting customer loyalty.

Rear on to examine some of LatAm’s most prominent instant payment solutions through the four key lenses of Gustanomics: Need, Incentive, Status, and Engagement.

Pix (Brazil)

Launched in 2020 by Brazil’s central bank, Pix has now surpassed cash as the most-used form of payment in the country. Furthermore, its impact is so big that cellphones have become the most popular way to move money, and over half of Brazilians don’t think they’ll be using cash in five years' time.

Need: Pix met users’ fundamental need for free, instant, round-the-clock transfers.

Engagement: Its standardized, seamless peer-to-peer experience across all banks fostered incredible engagement, gaining more than 110 million users in its first year alone.

Incentive: Free for individuals and offering lower merchant fees, Pix provided powerful use incentives for companies, small business owners, and consumers alike. 

Status: Pix quickly achieved global status as a benchmark for real-time payments, while allowing people to easily share their payment details online via QR codes, email address, social security and mobile phone numbers.

Where payment providers can help: While revolutionary, the instantaneous nature of Pix transactions can be exploited by fraudsters preying on distraction. Protecting customers from Pix-related fraud is the perfect place for payment providers and banks to boost user trust and engagement while unlocking speed and convenience.

SPEI and CoDi (Mexico)

Mexico's SPEI (Sistema de Pagos Electrónicos Interbancarios) is a powerful, real-time interbank transfer system, the robust backbone of its digital financial landscape for over two decades. 

Need: SPEI meets the core need for rapid, secure interbank transfers, processing over 3 million transactions daily. In fact, six in ten Mexicans now rely on it for sending money.

Engagement: While its initial consumer-facing overlay, CoDi (QR code payments), struggled due to friction, Mexico is adapting fast. The newer DiMo (Dinero Móvil), which enables instant phone number-based transfers, shows improved engagement, attracting over 7 million users in its first year.

Incentive: For consumers, the primary incentive is the unparalleled speed and reliability of transfers across banks. For businesses, it facilitates efficient B2B transactions.

Status: SPEI holds an indispensable status as the bedrock of Mexico's digital payments infrastructure, continuously adapting to new consumer demands through initiatives like DiMo.

Where payment providers can help: Despite SPEI's foundational strength and longevity, cash still dominates 90 percent of purchases below 500 pesos. Providers can boost overall user experience by simplifying consumer-facing interfaces even further, thereby providing more compelling incentives that draw users away from cash for everyday micro-transactions and transfers.

Transferencias 3.0 (Argentina)

Argentina’s Transferencias 3.0 is a central bank initiative launched in 2020 that dramatically accelerated interoperable digital payments, particularly through widespread QR code usage.

Need: Transferencias 3.0 met the need for fast, universal, and interoperable payments, allowing users to pay with any digital wallet or banking app via a single QR code.

Engagement: This initiative significantly boosted user engagement by empowering digital wallets like Mercado Pago and MODO, integrating instant payments into daily routines. In April 2023, Transferencias 3.0 was responsible for 199 million transfers per month, almost two-thirds of the 309 million transactions made using debit and credit cards.

Incentive: The primary incentive for consumers is convenience and the ability to instantly pay across various digital wallets, while merchants benefit from quicker access to funds.

Status: Transferencias 3.0 holds a strong status as the catalyst that pushed Argentina into a highly QR-code-driven payment landscape, a notable achievement in a challenging economic environment.

Where payment providers can help: Despite its success, Transferencias 3.0 still faces the challenge of a fragmented open banking system in Argentina, which can dilute user engagement. Providers can focus on unifying the user experience further through providing a seamless backend, while integrating the diverse use of digital wallets, cryptocurrencies and cash that makes up the diverse Argentinian payment ecosystem.

The Gustanomics opportunity for banks

These instant payment systems are transforming the way Latin American consumers are paying and transferring money. They also represent an excellent and accessible starting point on the digital banking journey, from which banks can start to engage, differentiate their services and build loyalty. 

While providing instant payments is now a given for Latin American banks and payment providers, by applying the principles of Gustanomics, they can take them a step further, making them personalised, intuitive and gratifying–helping ensure engagement, loyalty and long-term customer value. 

Contact us to learn more about how your FI can leverage Gustanomics to drive loyalty.