Number crunching is a key component of the payment industry, with digits scattered across the sector’s key stories.
Each week, Payment Expert digests these digits and brings an overview of the past payments week in numbers. This edition focuses on the developing economic situation of Argentina under the nation’s new President.
Milei issues order to devalue Argentine peso by 2% per month
Argentina recently had its first set of economic reforms under the country’s new President Javier Milei and his Economic Minister Luis Caputo.
The right-wing duo ordered the Central Bank of Argentina to devalue to introduce a 2% devaluation per month of the national peso – a currency that has already been significantly weakened when compared to the US dollar.
However, it is yet to be seen whether Milei will further act on his promise and abolish the Argentinian Central Bank altogether.
PSR seeks to spare UK businesses from £200m cross-border fees
The Payment Systems Regulator (PSR) has issued a statement on the monopoly that Mastercard and Visa hold over British businesses when it comes to commerce in the European Economic Area.
According to the PSR, the total estimate paid on fees by UK firms to the two US companies ranges between £150m-£200m, which the regulator marked as “unduly high level”.
To help solve this, the PSR has proposed a time-limited price cap on cross-border payments for UK businesses.
NSW given 4,500 machines to test new cashless gaming mechanism
Four Australian gaming firms have recently announced that they will be helping the state of New South Wales (NSW) progress with adoption of cashless gaming.
The companies will support the NSW government by providing a total of 4,500 electronic gaming machines for the new cashless gaming trials to be conducted.
This in turn will strengthen the state’s player protection capabilities and will deepen the promotion of responsible gaming across the community.
Mollie says 64% more customers use BNPL compared to last year
BNPL firm Mollie has published its latest study where it highlights that the option to pay in instalments still remains highly popular amongst UK consumers.
The study revealed that 64% of UK respondents have increased their usage of BNPL services over the last year. This is parallel to online shopping becoming even more popular, with 49% of respondents ready to spend more online in the next 12 months.
Almost everyone surveyed (94%) believes that the key to good customer experience is having flexible payment options.
Splitit receives $50m in investments to maintain strategic growth
Embedded payments provider Splitit payments has secured fresh funding from Motive Partners to continue with its development strategy.
Having already committed to the partnership by obtaining a controlling stake in Splitit valued at $25m, Motive is preparing a second investment round for another $25m – bringing the total investment to $50m.
This has led to Splitit delisting from the ASX exchange and moving headquarters from Israel to the Cayman Islands.
