How it would impact the anticipated collection of Gross Revenue to plastics. What are the advantages for trades and the obstacles for fintech
26.04.2019 • 18:08hs • Attack on the fintech
Attack on the fintech
Recession and consumer crisis, but taxes do not stop: buying or selling by Mercado Pago will be more expensive
/https://assets.iproup.com/assets/jpg/2019/04/3668.jpg)
The fintech live a summer compared to the overwhelming and gray sky that sees the rest of the industries in Argentina. The fall in consumption, inflation and the rise in the dollar have not caused significant damage to a sector that, despite everything, registers a growth of 110% annually and already accumulates 6,000 direct and 90,000 indirect jobs.
But not everything is rosy. Technology-based financiers see a tributary "cloud" that could change the landscape.
The high taxes represent a reason for suffocation for small and medium entrepreneurs and an obstacle for consumers who are looking, increasingly, for low prices or buying opportunities that fit in their pocket.
In this sense, the Argentine Confederation of Medium-sized Enterprises (CAME) point out that the tax collection voracity is putting the production system in check: "The new anticipated mechanism of collecting Gross Revenue to card transactions is a serious blow to SMEs. who can no longer resist the pressure. "
In a country where the tax burden exceeds 30% of GDP, according to international entities such as the OECD and ECLAC, any regulations that arise and add fiscal burden to businesses are seen as a threat.
In this sense, a regime (Sirtac) that proposes the early payment of the cards, just in the middle of a recession and a fall in consumption, is of great concern. The grouping companies of payments do not hide their displeasure before this initiative.
For the time being, the fintechs remain oblivious to many of the regulations that affect banks and transactions with traditional payment methods. Moreover, they see the opportunity to take advantage of this competitive advantage to gain participation and add users.
The ease of paying with the smartphone is the main attraction for more people to incorporate virtual wallets, which are gaining acceptance from the benefits they offer in terms of fees and costs.
What does it consist of
The new Sirtac regime published in the Official Gazette establishes a Gross Revenue withholding regime on:
- Periodical settlements or surrenders derived from credit card transactions
- Collections through administrators of transactional systems
With this definition, Mercado Pago is included (because it is a payment operator), if the provinces support the official initiative.
The CAME repudiates this resolution under the argument of promoting informality by proposing greater tax pressure, in a context in which Gross Income is already indicated by all the productive sectors as one of the most distorting taxes.
Meanwhile, virtual wallets are - once again - in a gray area, both for the Central Bank and the withholding agents of the provinces that adhere to and the companies themselves in the industry.
Companies like MercadoPago and Ualá are analyzing how to face the irruption of a regime (Sirtac) that makes card payments more expensive.
For businesses, this type of digital wallet offers advantages that translate into a direct profitability for them:
- They must pay a commission of just 0.7% of the amount of the operation (against 1% and up to 2.15% in the case of debit and credit cards)
- They are not affected by tax withholdings
- Accreditation is on the spot
- If the QR code is associated with a card, the payment with debit is free (while with credit yes)
Juan Pablo Bruzzo, president of the Argentine Chamber of Fintech, argues that both the AFIP and the provinces and withholding agents - in this case - must seek equality in tax matters, including withholding the "grouping of payment" as a synonym of the virtual wallets.
In this sense, having equal rules of the game for all means of payment is a necessity and is seen as something positive, both for Bruzzo and for other players in the sector.
However, the co-founder of Moni, the fintech of digital loans, states: "In general terms, any tax that is added to digital transactions discourages use and financial inclusion, which is why I think it is not a good measure and it goes against what happens in the whole world. "
Zone by zone
In case merchants should perceive this retention, the opportunity for virtual wallets depends on one aspect: in which jurisdiction it is enforced.
To understand how it might feel in each region, it is necessary to differentiate where the fintechs are in the country. Within the Argentine ecosystem, the Metropolitan Area of Buenos Aires (AMBA) is key.
According to the Argentine Fintech Ecosystem Report prepared by Accenture and the Chamber of the sector, there are 133 financial startups in the country. Of that total, 108 operate and have their headquarters in the Province of Buenos Aires and the City.
"CABA represents a pole of attraction for this type of organization due to its proximity to most of its users and other strategic partners such as banks, which maintain their headquarters in the city," the report cites.
In this way, 69% of the firms in the sector have their headquarters in AMBA. The geographical distribution of the fintech, not being based on physical branches, has to do with where the population is.
"Where there is a cell phone, there must be a technological financial service," says Bruzzo. For this reason, 7% of fintech operations are in Capital and 39% in Province, as indicated by the president of the Chamber.
In case the City does not adhere to the resolution, as anticipated, it remains to define the position that will be taken in GBA, another area fundamental for the Fintech operation.
The opportunity for these companies is to appear as an attractive alternative for businesses, which seek new methods of payment outside those contemplated by the resolution without moving to informality.
Lisandro López, partner in the Tax & Legal area of the PwC consultancy, points out that, in addition to the Federal Capital, jurisdictions such as Mendoza and La Pampa have already refused to withhold Gross Income under this system.
"The regulators said that this system generates informality, while the Arbitration Commission says it tends to simplify collection regimes," explains the specialist on the bid between the different sectors since the publication of the measure.
According to CAME, the risk of Sirtac is that it generates hidden increases in tax pressure. In the entity, the concern is also related to the aliquots, which can range between 0.01% and 5%; and it may be the case that there are provinces that do not adhere and intend to continue to apply their regimes unilaterally.
For the confederation, this early collection mechanism for debit, credit and PayPal cards goes in the opposite direction to the efforts to encourage the use of electronic means of payment.
In this context, with a downward consumption and a tax pressure that stifles small and medium enterprises, López believes that this is not the right moment to push this regulation, so the potential impact for virtual wallets seems to remain on stand. by for the moment.
:quality(85):max_bytes(102400)/https://assets.iproup.com/assets/jpg/2022/01/25399_landscape.jpg)
:quality(85):max_bytes(102400)/https://assets.iproup.com/assets/jpg/2024/10/40331_landscape.jpg)
:quality(85):max_bytes(102400)/https://assets.iproup.com/assets/jpg/2022/07/29486_landscape.jpg)
:quality(85):max_bytes(102400)/https://assets.iproup.com/assets/jpg/2021/07/20812_landscape.jpg)
:quality(85):max_bytes(102400)/https://assets.iproup.com/assets/jpg/2019/03/3070_landscape.jpg)
:quality(85):max_bytes(102400)/https://assets.iproup.com/assets/jpg/2025/06/43061_landscape.jpg)
:quality(85):max_bytes(102400)/https://assets.iproup.com/assets/jpg/2024/08/39849_landscape.jpg)
:quality(85):max_bytes(102400)/https://assets.iproup.com/assets/jpeg/2025/06/43054_landscape.jpeg)
:quality(85):max_bytes(102400)/https://assets.iproup.com/assets/jpg/2022/07/29680_landscape.jpg)
:quality(85):max_bytes(102400)/https://assets.iproup.com/assets/jpg/2022/07/29487_landscape.jpg)
:quality(85):max_bytes(102400)/https://assets.iproup.com/assets/jpg/2025/06/43085_landscape.jpg)
:quality(85):max_bytes(102400)/https://assets.iproup.com/assets/jpg/2023/05/34911_landscape.jpg)
:quality(85):max_bytes(102400)/https://assets.iproup.com/assets/jpg/2025/06/43060_landscape.jpg)
:quality(85):max_bytes(102400)/https://assets.iproup.com/assets/jpg/2023/12/37171_landscape.jpg)
:quality(85):max_bytes(102400)/https://assets.iproup.com/assets/jpg/2021/05/18672_landscape.jpg)