According to the Credit and Debit Card Market in Bolivia report, in 2024, Bolivia’s payment ecosystem—which includes credit and debit cards, mobile wallets, electronic transfers, and checks—processed a total of 1.0038 billion transactions, reaching a record value of B$1.0002 trillion. This represents a year-on-year increase of 116% in volume and 18% in value, compared to 2023.
The bulk of the value was processed through OETF (Electronic Funds Transfer Orders), which accounted for B$812 billion. Of this amount, B$601 billion (74%) corresponded to interbank transactions between customers of different financial institutions, cleared through the LIP’s MLD system and other settlement and clearing houses. An additional B$187 billion (23%) was attributed to intrabank operations, involving accounts within the same institution, while B$23.8 billion (3%) reflected service payments conducted via online and mobile banking platforms.
Mobile wallets experienced explosive growth, with transaction values soaring by 246% year-over-year and transaction volume jumping 256%, underscoring the rapid adoption of digital payment tools in the country.
In contrast, electronic card payments saw a 12.3% decline in value, falling from B$22.07 billion in 2023 to B$19.354 billion in 2024. However, the number of card transactions rose by 5.8%, totaling 99.3 million operations for the year.
December 2024 alone recorded a notable 20.1% nominal increase in card payment value, alongside an 11.9% growth in transaction volume compared to the previous month, reflecting a strong year-end surge in consumer activity.
In terms of credit card portfolio market share, Banco Nacional de Bolivia led the market, followed by Banco Mercantil Santa Cruz, Banco Económico, Banco BISA, and Banco de Crédito de Bolivia. Collectively, these five institutions managed 80.7% of the total credit card market as of December 2024.
