OXXO Celebrates New Banking App

OXXO, a chain of Mexican convenience stores owned by FEMSA, recently announced the release of an app that will allow customers to send and receive money, debuting in this way as a fintech. The app is called Spin and it works as a digital wallet that allows clients to make transfers without the need for a bank card. Users will be able to send and receive money from other users on the platform and withdraw it at the checkout of any OXXO store. 

As mentioned in a Forbes article, Eugenio Garza, CFO of Femsa, announced that the app is now being tested in San Luis Potosi with the objective of taking it all over Mexico. “Spin is basically just a starting point. The app allows you to do the same things you would do at our stores: peer-to-peer transfers, mobile data payments and more, except through your phone. You can deposit or withdraw money at OXXO stores, too.” Garza said the company is planning to add other functionalities to the app, such as a loyalty program. 

This is a big step for OXXO because, according to the National Banking and Securities Commission (CNBV) figures shown in the Forbes article, the company is the main banking correspondent in Mexico. Of the 43,397 points to make payments or transfers in operation at the end of 2019, the chain represented 43 percent with 20,962 branches.

OXXO currently allows clients to pay using cards from BBVA, Citibanamex, Santander, Scotiabank, Caja Popular Mexicana and Caja Morelia Valladolid, among others, reports El Economista. Clients will still be able to pay with their cards but will have a new payment option. “You choose if you want a virtual account or if you prefer to use a physical Visa debit card,” reads Spin by OXXO’s website. Spin will handle its operations through a ComproPago S.A.P.I. de C.V., which currently operates under the protection of Mexico’s Fintech Law. If ComproPago is authorized to be a fintech, Spin’s operations could be supervised and regulated by the National Stock Exchange Commission. 

To open a Spin account, users need a national telephone number, email and an official ID, as mentioned by Xataka. There are two types of accounts users can choose from, depending on the amount of money they have. “Spin Base” allows a maximum amount in the account of MX$ 6,483.40 (US$ 309.88), while “Spin Más” increases the account maximum to MX$ 200,000 (US$ 9559.06).

As previously mentioned by MBN, OXXO has been expanding its business for the last years with its expansion beyond Mexican borders, the release of its own smartphone using the KaiOS operating system and generating its own live performance streaming service in Mexico. Adding a financial service without the need for a bank card could mean another big step for the company. 

This new venture is only one of the many fintech options that have accelerated since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to exponential growth of digitalization and financial technology. Industry experts believe open finance will be even more popular in Latin America, Mexico included, which could help data exchange between institutions to offer better products, reports El Economista. Mexico’s fintech companies have demonstrated an ability to grow exponentially and organically, especially among younger populations. All of this suggests that the next generation of customers will have access to many financial services – opening accounts, paying, borrowing and investing – digitally, explained Anabel Pérez, Co-Founder and CEO of Novopayment, to MBN.