earlyretirement
Moderator
🇦🇷💵📉💳🚀Decline in Cash Usage and Rise of Digital Wallets in Argentina
Over the past five years, Argentina has undergone a dramatic transformation in payment habits. Cash usage in stores dropped from 54% in 2019 to 25% in 2024, according to the Global Payments Report 2025 by Worldpay. This reduction positions Argentina as the Latin American country with the highest use of digital wallets, both at physical points of sale and in e-commerce.
Regional Leadership in Digital Wallets
In e-commerce platforms, 31% of payments in Argentina are made with digital wallets-the highest rate in the region-and this figure is projected to reach 44% by 2027.
At physical points of sale, 18% of purchases are already made through digital wallets, far surpassing most neighboring countries.
The rise of digital wallets in Argentina has been driven by factors such as high inflation, widespread smartphone adoption, and competition among major players like Mercado Pago and traditional banks.
🌎Global Trends in Digital Payments
Globally, digital payments accounted for 66% of all transactions in 2024, and this figure is expected to reach 79% by 2030. This trend is especially evident in e-commerce, where the share of digital payments has doubled over the past decade (from 34% in 2014 to 66% in 2024). Growth is driven by fintech innovation, the pandemic, and consumer preference for faster, safer payment methods.
Electronic payments are expected to nearly triple worldwide by 2030, surpassing three trillion transactions annually.
In Latin America, the use of digital wallets at physical points of sale could reach 29% by 2027, while in e-commerce it could reach 28%.
Cash, while still present, is stabilizing at low and declining levels, and a fully “cashless society” has not yet materialized in any country.
Drivers Behind the Change in Argentina
✅Inflation and Informal Economy: High inflation and the need for traceability have spurred the digitization of payments.
✅Innovation and Competition: The development of solutions like Mercado Pago and banking interoperability encourage the adoption of virtual wallets.
✅Pandemic: COVID-19 accelerated the shift toward contactless and digital payments.
📣Argentina leads Latin America in the use of digital wallets, with a historic drop in cash usage and rapid adoption of digital payments in both physical and online commerce. This transformation is part of a global trend, where digital payments already account for two-thirds of all transactions and are expected to reach nearly 80% by 2030.
Over the past five years, Argentina has undergone a dramatic transformation in payment habits. Cash usage in stores dropped from 54% in 2019 to 25% in 2024, according to the Global Payments Report 2025 by Worldpay. This reduction positions Argentina as the Latin American country with the highest use of digital wallets, both at physical points of sale and in e-commerce.
Regional Leadership in Digital Wallets
In e-commerce platforms, 31% of payments in Argentina are made with digital wallets-the highest rate in the region-and this figure is projected to reach 44% by 2027.
At physical points of sale, 18% of purchases are already made through digital wallets, far surpassing most neighboring countries.
The rise of digital wallets in Argentina has been driven by factors such as high inflation, widespread smartphone adoption, and competition among major players like Mercado Pago and traditional banks.
🌎Global Trends in Digital Payments
Globally, digital payments accounted for 66% of all transactions in 2024, and this figure is expected to reach 79% by 2030. This trend is especially evident in e-commerce, where the share of digital payments has doubled over the past decade (from 34% in 2014 to 66% in 2024). Growth is driven by fintech innovation, the pandemic, and consumer preference for faster, safer payment methods.
Electronic payments are expected to nearly triple worldwide by 2030, surpassing three trillion transactions annually.
In Latin America, the use of digital wallets at physical points of sale could reach 29% by 2027, while in e-commerce it could reach 28%.
Cash, while still present, is stabilizing at low and declining levels, and a fully “cashless society” has not yet materialized in any country.
Drivers Behind the Change in Argentina
✅Inflation and Informal Economy: High inflation and the need for traceability have spurred the digitization of payments.
✅Innovation and Competition: The development of solutions like Mercado Pago and banking interoperability encourage the adoption of virtual wallets.
✅Pandemic: COVID-19 accelerated the shift toward contactless and digital payments.
📣Argentina leads Latin America in the use of digital wallets, with a historic drop in cash usage and rapid adoption of digital payments in both physical and online commerce. This transformation is part of a global trend, where digital payments already account for two-thirds of all transactions and are expected to reach nearly 80% by 2030.
