In a recent round table discussion on banking processes, the technological infrastructure needed for bankarization in the country was a key topic of debate. Julio Antonio García Trápaga, director of Support and Development of Digital Products at ETECSA, highlighted the importance of Transfermóvil, a project that facilitates digital payments using various methods, including QR codes. Trápaga emphasized that Transfermóvil has 4.3 million registered users and processes around 75 million monthly operations. Additionally, close to 40,000 businesses utilize the platform for QR payments. Trápaga also mentioned the advantages of payment by QR, such as the absence of operation limits and the ability to share QR codes for payments. He revealed that Havana, Santiago de Cuba, Holguín, and Cienfuegos are the provinces with the highest usage of Transfermóvil for online payments.
Iván Collazo Garcés, commercial specialist at Xetid, emphasized the commitment of his organization to facilitating electronic payments and transfers. He introduced Enzona, an ecosystem designed for electronic commerce that offers a payment gateway and a boulevard of virtual stores. Garcés noted that over 800,000 Cubans currently use Enzona, which requires a mobile data connection but is a free payment service. Enzona allows for the payment of various services, including electricity, gas, telephone bills, and postal orders. Garcés also highlighted the territorial applications developed by Xetid, such as Ticket and Sabor Cubano, which cater to different regions of the country.
Addressing concerns raised by users about the complexity of registration in Enzona, Garcés acknowledged the need to provide various identity verification measures to ensure the security of users. He assured that fraud and credential theft complaints have been reduced significantly and highlighted user support services offered by Xetid. Furthermore, José Manuel Valido, director of Institutional Communication at Correos de Cuba, discussed their collaboration with other organizations to advance the country’s digital transformation and bankarization. Correos de Cuba has incorporated QR codes into their services, with plans to implement them in the majority of their post offices by the end of the year. Valido also mentioned the implementation of the extra box service, which allows customers to obtain cash advances of up to 5,000 pesos, reducing the need for people to crowd banks and ATMs for cash. Additionally, Correos de Cuba has simplified the process of acquiring stamp of stamp (ISD) through electronic payments, with over 1.2 million stamps sold from January to July 2023.
Overall, the round table discussed the technological infrastructure and digital platforms that support bankarization in the country, highlighting the benefits and user experiences of Transfermóvil, Enzona, and Correos de Cuba’s services. These initiatives aim to enhance digital literacy and financial inclusion for the population.