(Bloomberg) -- Mobile payment startup Stripe Inc. began operations in Mexico, three weeks after after the launch of a similar central bank-backed system aimed at boosting the amount of digital payments used in the nation’s cash-heavy economy.
Stripe, used by companies including Uber Technologies Inc., touts a key difference between it and CoDi, as Banxico-backed cobro digital is known: Its users can make and take payments worldwide. Distrust of established banks in Mexico is high, and remains one of the key obstacles to widespread CoDi adoption.
“We will make life simple, whatever the payment systems are required,” John Collison, co-founder of the San Francisco-based company, told reporters in Mexico City. “You can just go back to building your business.”
CoDi, which was rolled out in conjunction with a group of the nation’s largest banks, is best thought of as the infrastructure upon which established banks can build their own payment applications using QR code technology. Stripe aims to market its services throughout Mexico.
The company says that they are listening to users to see if there is sufficient demand for adding CoDi as a payment system on the Stripe platform.
“We’re excited about any initiative that will help internet companies in Mexico reach more customers and grow more quickly,” said Eduardo Serrano, the head of Stripe’s Mexico office. “We’re certainly open to adding CoDi as a payment option as we expand our presence in Mexico.”
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