Payment methods in Colombia

South America

12methods

12banks

Colombia is one of Latin America's fastest-growing e-commerce markets, with a 13% annual growth rate and a digitally active population of over 41 million. Cards are the leading payment method, accounting for 36% of online transactions - but the cards Colombian consumers hold are largely locally issued Visa and Mastercard, backed by Colombian banks and tied to local-currency accounts.

Market takeaways

Colombia is one of Latin America's fastest-growing e-commerce markets, with a 13% annual growth rate and a digitally active population of over 41 million. Cards are the leading payment method, accounting for 36% of online transactions - but the cards Colombian consumers hold are largely locally issued Visa and Mastercard, backed by Colombian banks and tied to local-currency accounts.
Decline rates for these cards are significantly higher when processed through an international acquirer. For merchants entering Colombia, local card acquiring is the single most important factor in improving authorisation rates and reducing lost revenue at checkout. PPRO provides access to local acquiring infrastructure in Colombia, processing all major card brands on local payment rails.
Colombia's card market is dominated by Visa and Mastercard - but almost all of the cards in circulation are locally issued by Colombian banks. They carry familiar logos, but they are tied to Colombian peso accounts and subject to local issuing rules that make them behave differently to their international counterparts at the point of authorisation.
When these cards are processed through an international acquirer, decline rates are noticeably higher. The fix is straightforward: local acquiring. PPRO processes Visa, Mastercard, and Discover on local Colombian payment rails, giving merchants access to the same infrastructure used by domestic acquirers - and the authorisation rates that come with it.

Population

53.4M

Online population

41.1M

B2C e-commerce

$16B

Banked population

92%

Payment method breakdown

Card36%
Bank transfer29%
E-Wallet26%
Cash8%
BNPL1%

Card scheme breakdown

Market data coming soon.

Cross-border e-commerce

Market data coming soon.

Featured payment methods in Colombia

All payment methods available in this market, sorted by prominence.

Nequi

Bancolombia-backed Colombian digital wallet for online and in-store payments and transfers. Operator: Nequi (Bancolombia S.A.). Est. users: ~26 million users (mid-2025).

PSE

Colombia's national online bank-transfer button (Pagos Seguros en Linea) for card-free e-commerce payments directly from bank accounts. Operator: ACH Colombia S.A.. Est. users: 27.4 million registered users (2025).

Mercado Pago

MercadoLibre's pan-Latin-American digital wallet and payment account supporting online checkout, QR payments and money transfers. Operator: Mercado Libre (DeRemate.com de Mexico / MercadoLibre S.R.L.). Est. users: ~78 million monthly active users (Q4 2025).

Uala

Argentine fintech offering a prepaid Mastercard and wallet used for online and in-store payments, also operating in Mexico and Colombia. Operator: Uala (Wanap S.A. / ANG Servicios Financieros). Est. users: Argentina's 3rd-most-used wallet (~20% share, 2025); millions of users.

NuPay

Nubank's checkout payment method letting its large customer base pay merchants directly from their Nu account, often in installments. Operator: Nu Pagamentos S.A. (Nubank). Est. users: ~135 million Nubank customers across markets (2025).

Addi

Colombian buy-now-pay-later provider offered at online and in-store checkout. Operator: Addi (Adelante Soluciones Financieras S.A.S.). Est. users: ~2.7 million active consumers (2025).

Bancolombia a la mano

Bancolombia's low-cost simplified-account wallet for transfers and online/in-store payments. Operator: Bancolombia S.A.. Est. users: Millions of users; >23 million app downloads (2025).

Bre-B

Colombia's central-bank interoperable instant-payment system (Pix-inspired) using aliases for real-time A2A payments. Operator: Banco de la Republica de Colombia. Est. users: Rapid alias uptake since Oct 2025 launch; nationwide rollout.

Daviplata

Davivienda's mass-market Colombian wallet used for transfers, subsidies and online/in-store payments. Operator: Davivienda S.A.. Est. users: >19 million users (mid-2025).

Movii

Colombia's first regulated SEDPE fintech wallet, used for transfers and online/in-store payments. Operator: Movii S.A.. Est. users: ~4 million customers (2025).

Nequi (Bancolombia)

Nequi, Bancolombia's digital financial platform, operates in Panama as a mobile wallet targeting both banked and underbanked consumers. It provides a digital account with no minimum balance requirements, enabling payments, transfers, and savings functionality through a smartphone app. Alongside Yappy, it is one of the key drivers of the high digital wallet payment share.

Efecty and Baloto

Networks that offer cash payment options for online purchases, integrated through payment gateways like PayU and ePayco.

Featured banks in Colombia

All banks operating in this market, sorted by prominence.

Nubank

São Paulo, Brazil

Nubank is Brazil's leading neobank and the world's largest fintech by customers (over 100 million). It offers credit cards, digital accounts, personal loans, and investment products.

Itaú Unibanco

São Paulo, Brazil

Itaú Unibanco is Latin America's largest bank by assets, formed from the 2008 merger of Itaú and Unibanco. It offers retail, SME, corporate, and investment banking.

BBVA

Bilbao, Spain

BBVA is Spain's second-largest bank with a major presence in Mexico, South America, Turkey, and the USA. It is known for its digital banking leadership.

Bank of Nova Scotia (Scotiabank)

Toronto, Canada

Scotiabank is Canada's most international bank with major operations in Latin America, the Caribbean, and Asia.

BTG Pactual

São Paulo, Brazil

BTG Pactual is Brazil's largest investment bank and a leading asset manager in Latin America, offering investment banking, asset and wealth management, and corporate lending.

Bancolombia

Medellín, Colombia

Bancolombia is Colombia's largest bank by assets and the country's leading financial institution, offering retail, SME, corporate, and investment banking in Colombia and Central America.

Banco de Crédito del Perú (BCP)

Lima, Peru

Banco de Crédito del Perú (BCP) is Peru's largest bank by assets, offering retail, SME, and corporate banking. It is part of Credicorp, Latin America's largest financial holding company.

Banco de Bogotá (Grupo Aval)

Bogotá, Colombia

Banco de Bogotá is the flagship bank of Grupo Aval, Colombia's largest financial conglomerate, offering retail, SME, and corporate banking.

Davivienda

Bogotá, Colombia

Davivienda is one of Colombia's largest banks, specialising in housing finance, retail, and SME banking. It has operations in Central America.

BBVA Colombia

Bogotá, Colombia

BBVA Colombia is the Colombian subsidiary of BBVA, offering retail and corporate banking.

Banco Pichincha

Quito, Ecuador

Banco Pichincha is Ecuador's largest private bank, offering retail, SME, and corporate banking with extensive operations in the US, Spain, and other Latin American markets.