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Fintech Regulations
9 Months Ended
Sep. 30, 2023
Fintech Regulations [Abstract]  
Fintech Regulations Fintech Regulations
Regulations issued by the Central Banks and other regulators of the countries where the Company operates applicable to its Fintech business are described in Note 3 to the consolidated financial statements in the Company’s 2022 10-K.
Argentina
On September 1, 2022, the CBA issued Communication “A” 7593, which extended the application of regulations for the protection of financial services users to the payment service providers who offer payment accounts (“PSPOCP” according to its Spanish acronym), such as MercadoLibre S.R.L. The regulations were already applicable to non-financial credit providers. This communication came into effect on March 1, 2023. On February 15, 2023, the CBA issued Communication “A” 7699, which establishes that PSPOCP must submit the Information Regime on Claims, with the first submission deadline being April 24, 2023, and the Information Regime on Transparency, Chapter II, with first submission deadline for monthly information being March 14, 2023.
On August 24, 2023, the CBA issued Communication “A” 7825, which states that PSPOCPs must allocate in full to their clients any compensation received from financial institutions for investing clients’ funds held in deposit accounts into Argentine treasury bonds. Since August 25, 2023, MercadoLibre S.R.L. is not receiving any compensation from financial institutions for clients’ funds held in deposit account. As a consequence, Communication “A” 7825 has no applicable effect for MercadoLibre S.R.L.
On September 14, 2023, the CBA issued Communication “A” 7861, establishing that starting on December 1, 2023, DEBIN (debit immediate), the main funding source of Mercado Pago users’ accounts, will be suspended and replaced with a pull transfer method that requires the consent of the client outside of Mercado Pago’s environment before the first use. Management is currently assessing the situation since this suspension and replacement may lead to pertinent changes to the way that Mercado Pago users are able to link and transfer funds to their digital accounts from their respective bank accounts or other digital accounts.
Brazil
The new prudential rules announced by the Central Bank during March 2022 were effective starting in July 2023, with full implementation by January 2025. The new rules require a gradual increase in regulatory capital requirement for the Company’s regulated Brazilian subsidiaries until 2025: 6.75% from July 2023, 8.75% from January 2024 and 10.50% from January 2025.
Colombia
On June 28, 2023, MercadoPago S.A. Compañía de Financiamiento obtained a license to operate as a financial institution in Colombia which enables it to offer financial deposits (digital accounts). The minimum capital requirement has been paid-in. This subsidiary is expected to be operational by the first quarter of 2024.
Uruguay
On July 11, 2023, the Central Bank of Uruguay approved MercadoPago Uruguay S.R.L. to start operations as an Electronic Money Issuing Institution (“IEDE” according to its Spanish acronym). On October 1, 2023, MercadoPago Uruguay S.R.L. started operations. Under applicable regulations, MercadoPago Uruguay S.R.L. must deposit and maintain users’ funds in specific local bank accounts in order to ensure availability of existing balances in each user’s digital account.
Chile
On April 27, 2023, the Commission for the Financial Market (“CMF” according to its Spanish acronym) authorized the merger of Mercado Pago Operadora S.A. (formerly known as “Mercado Pago S.A.”) and Red Procesadora de Pagos Limitada, effective on May 1, 2023. This merger allows Mercado Pago Operadora S.A. to extend the processing of transactions and enable businesses and entrepreneurs in Chile the opportunity to access the Company’s ecosystem of Fintech services.