LatAm List – Mexico’s Central Bank is reportedly in conversation with e-commerce giant, Amazon, to develop a new mobile payments system that would allow customers to use QR codes to pay online. In a country where less than half the population has bank accounts, this payment system could revolutionize online retail.
The new system is called CoDi and is being built by the Mexican Central Bank. They have approached both Amazon and MercadoLibre about potential partnerships, although Amazon did not comment on the partnership. A pilot of the system will be released this month.
Fewer than 3.9% of purchases in Mexico were made online last year. Online retailers want to make it easier for unbanked customers to purchase online and pay later in convenience stores. Amazon also launched a debit card last year to capture more of Mexico’s unbanked market.
The Central Bank believes online retailers and banks will be able to integrate CoDi quickly, granting them access to a large customer base who has not previously been actively involved in e-commerce in Mexico.
Read more in Reuters.