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Fintechs are an increasing presence in the Dominican Republic, where they promise to improve inclusiveness in a still under-undermined nation.
With Jamaica and Puerto Rico, the Association of Fintech Societies (Adofintech) highlighted the Dominican Republic as a fintech chief in Central America and the Caribbean. The Interamerician Development Bank (BID) reports that the number of companies that the island nation welcomes in the field has increased from six in 2018 to 65 in 2024. This places the country in Latin America for its Economy Fintech and the leader in Central America and the Caribbean.
Internet banking services of the Dominican Republic and electronic payments show substantial growth of more than 20% in annual shift from 2023 to 2024, as well as an impressive innovation. This is particularly true in connection with tourism and funding, which combined representing 30% of the country’s GDP. The fact that the point is Qik, the country’s first neobank, which Banco Popular launched in 2022 and which quickly went from an application to an autonomous digital bank with more than 600,000 customers.
Part of the repercussions of the COVVI-19 pandemic in the Republic was an increased demand for non-traditional financial services, associated with an accelerated digitization. Improving the regulatory directives of the Central Bank of the Dominican Republic and the Superritantcia of Banks, including the 2016 innovation law and the emphasis on financial inclusion, revigorated the Fintech sector, explains José Alberto Adam Adam, director of the country of the Dominican Republic of Equifax.
“THE [fintech] The industry has evolved towards greater diversification, technological sophistication and an emphasis on financial inclusion, “he says.” There is now a multi-service expansion, financial technologies for specific segments such as personal financing tools for generation Z and banking solutions for migrants or informal workers. »»
At the upper end of the Fintech ecosystem are startups exploring tokenization and decentralized finance (DEFI) and the use of artificial intelligence in credit rating. The industry has traveled a long way, notes Adam, from Bluewallet, a Bitcoin Wallet, and Prestamistapp, a loan calculation and management assistance for financial institutions, launched in 2018.
Financial inclusion has so far delayed, despite the coherent growth of the Republic’s GDP; Only 55% of adults are banned, which in fact “one of the main challenges of the Dominican Republic”, maintains Adam. “The concentration of supply efforts on the previously banked population is about to reach maximum penetration. Consequently, the conversion of the non -banished population would considerably help the economic sectors we need to continue to grow. ”
Adam says that this would lead to a change in focusing towards “inclusion, efficiency, scalability and new hybrid models that combine the best of traditional and decentralized worlds”. New efforts include fintech, mobile banks, education programs and gender -based initiatives. The central bank has targeted 65% of adults in the financial system by 2030.
An aid blockchain
In April, PAYSETT and JMMB BANK of Jamaica joined forces to develop in the country and will provide improved digital payments and financial inclusion thanks to the solution of the paid bank of Payett.
Félix Pago, a fintech start-up based in Miami, added coverage to the Dominican Republic as well as to the northern triangle of El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras at the end of last year. This follows a partnership with Mastercard who will see a cat-based platform carrying the United States’ shipments. Félix Pago uses USDC Stablecoin to save exchange costs and transmit savings to customers for a lower rate than rapid transactions.
“Cryptocurrencies are a powerful fundraising catalyst,” said CEO Manuel Godoy in a press release, “but you have to abstract them from the user. I always say that it could be a donkey crossing the border, it doesn’t matter. What they want is money, the local currency, and they want it instantly and at the best possible price. allow. “
Last August, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) published a technical assistance report evaluating the potential impact of a digital currency of the Central Bank (CBDC) on retail transactions in the Domincan Republic. He found that even if the country has a well -developed national payment system, other improvements are necessary. Cash remains king in the region, and the IMF estimated that taking a Dominican CBDC would have an impact up to 20% of transactions, which in 2017 exceeded 90% in cash.