While the Government is working on drafting a decree to
"remove exclusivity"
from the SUBE card when paying for public transport,
companies in the fintech sector highlighted the change
that this step will imply in terms of financial inclusion and asked that, within Of the payment methods that are going to be added to pay for buses, trains and subways, digital wallets should not be left out.
The "opening" of the SUBE, which was confirmed this morning by presidential spokesperson Manuel Adorni,
comes after months of plastic shortages and long lines to register cards, a requirement to avoid paying the increases planned for transportation. The idea,
in the pipeline in public and private offices for years
, is to leverage NFC technology, which is used by most of the debit, credit and prepaid cards that operate in the country, and which is the same one used by SUBE. , to offer other means of payment that coexist with the transport card.
"The opening of public transportation could be the third great milestone of financial inclusion
for Argentina in the last fifteen years," explained the Fintech Chamber in a document.
"The first was the banking of social benefits in 2011
and, the
second, the development of the CBU/CVU immediate transfer system between 2018 and 2020,
which occurred in parallel with the rise of the fintech sector. The common denominator has been a policy active public in the matter," highlighted the business group.
"The measure will bring some 14 million people even closer to digital payments
and the use of financial products in everyday life and reduces the need to use cash," highlighted the Fintech Chamber.
"It is not about replacing the SUBE Card
, which is of singular value for applying social rates, but rather about expanding the offer of payment methods with more efficient options for people, companies and the State," the document highlighted.
Specifically,
the Chamber requests that payment options be opened for all means
: credit, debit and prepaid cards, more QR and NFC payments with cell phones. "The initiative must be implemented gradually and progressively under the cost/opportunity paradigm. In parallel, transportation companies must be able to freely choose the acquisition system that best suits their needs," the organization highlighted.
The business entity asks that
"competition be opened" and that "one monopoly not be changed for another."
"The solution is to promote an open and interoperable system that allows users of the bus, train and subway networks to choose to pay for their trips with debit, prepaid and
contactless
credit cards and through their cell phone with various solutions made available by digital wallets
"Regulatory authorities must guarantee that the paradigm of incorporating open solutions that allow transactions with all debit, prepaid, credit cards and other solutions provided by virtual wallets in the market is respected, promoting healthy competition between all actors, which will result in in greater benefits for passengers".
"The central point is to add alternatives - instead of limiting possibilities - respecting the tariff and control structures established by the regulatory and control authorities of the service," the document emphasized.
S.N.