Online commerce was one of the sales channels that benefited from the pandemic; however, for the WaloPay platform, scams also grew and became one of the weakest points for e-commerce, and also generated greater mistrust among consumers.
Due to this, the payment management platform began operations this year in Mexico, with the aim of serving businesses and consumers who require certainty in transactions.
“The need arose because there are many scams when making online transactions. Due to the pandemic, many people either lost their jobs or looked for other income alternatives and started their personal businesses online. But at the same time, scams have grown, four out of 10 people are victims of some type of Internet fraud,” said Luis Marçal Afonso, WaloPay’s operations manager.
There is still distrust in consumers to make purchases on the Internet on a regular basis, 80% of those surveyed by the Mexican Association of Online Sales (AMVO) said that they do not make any purchases for fear of suffering fraud, while 74% of those consulted said he was wary of providing banking information.
The association also highlighted that during 2020, consumer confidence had a slight drop, caused by the distrust expressed by those surveyed.
“We wanted to develop a transaction intermediary that allows us to avoid fraud in online purchases, because on some platforms purchases take place between two strangers; sales can lend themselves to scams in some publications, it may be that the product does not exist or that you receive something else, “added Afonso.
As a seller, the funds from a sale are held within the platform until the customer receives and approves the merchandise, or until the return process is completed.
While for buyers, their funds remain within WaloPay until the purchase is successfully credited.
Within its expansion plans in the country, the platform intends to venture into the management of payments for independent workers.
“Our growth plans also include bringing this type of service to independent workers, because there is also a great possibility of fraud there and we also need to protect these types of transactions,” concluded Afonso.
Attention to businesses and consumers
Requirements
- To use the service, the intermediary requests official documentation to validate identity, in addition to bank details.
Accreditation
- Regarding the verification of the transactions, the platform requests evidence of the product and witnesses that prove the success of the operations.
Business model
- Its business model consists of a commission, which varies from 1 to 4%, depending on the amount transacted, whose limit is 1 million pesos.
e-commerce size
- During 2020, electronic commerce generated a total of 316,000 million pesos, according to the AMVO.
retail sales
- Internet retail sales represented 9% of total retail sales in Mexico, according to AMVO.