The transaction includes Arcus’ utility payments, mobile top-ups, gift cards and cash in/out operations, Tapi said in a press release translated by Google.
Mastercard will retain the Arcus brand and its payment processing, settlement and reconciliation capabilities through the real-time payment system of Mexico’s Interbank Electronic Payment System (SPEI), according to the release.
The acquisition will support the expansion of Tapi’s payment network across Mexico and Latin America, per the release.
“To the cutting-edge technology and customer experience that have enabled our exponential growth in recent years, we now add reliable technology and established relationships in the local financial ecosystem,” Tapi CEO and Co-Founder Tomás Mindlin said in the release.
It was reported in July 2024 that Tapi, which is an Argentina-based payment processor, raised $22 million in new funding to help fuel its expansion in Mexico.
Mindlin told Bloomberg at the time that he expected Mexico to be Tapi’s fastest growing market in the following two years.
“We’re going to be working with the FinTechs that are going to grow the most, continue to do the most financial inclusion and transform cash to digital payments, so Mexico is very important for us,” Mindlin said in the July 2024 interview.
Mastercard acquired Arcus in November 2021, saying that the Arcus Pay Network had direct connection with many of the largest billers in Mexico and access to the country’s largest retailers and that the transaction would assist with bill pay solution delivery and other real-time payment applications across Latin America.
The PYMNTS Intelligence report “2025 Global Digital Shopping Index: Mexico Edition” found that Mexican consumers are leaning into mobile shopping.
The report found that 47% of the country’s consumers used a mobile device for their latest purchase, with millennials leading the way at 52% and baby boomers and seniors not far behind at 41%.
It also found that 49% of Mexican shoppers want to use cross-channel shopping, 47% used phones as part of their most recent retail purchase, and 30% used a third-party, one-click checkout option for their latest online purchase.
