After expanding product offerings, digital bank will also accelerate lending

04/06/2024

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André Chaves — Foto: Rogério Vieira/Valor

Mercado Pago has spent the past few years expanding its product offerings to complete its transition from a payments company to a digital bank. Now, the company believes it is time to “come out of hiding,” said André Chaves, the platform’s new senior vice president.

“We’ve stayed under the radar in recent years, but now it’s time to make some noise. We started ramping up our communication from last year’s Black Friday onwards, participated in Salvador’s Carnival, and have interesting plans for the second half of the year,” Mr. Chaves said in his first interview since taking over his new role within Mercado Libre in March. Having joined the company in 2020, Mr. Chaves previously handled investor relations for the group.

The diagnosis that the bank is entering a new phase is based primarily on two points, according to Mr. Chaves: the product range is structured, and the environment for credit is becoming more favorable. Mercado Pago officially positioned itself as a digital bank in 2022, during a time when new credit concessions were more restricted. Since the second half of last year, however, the bank has been accelerating lending.

Mercado Pago does not disclose breakdown data for Brazil, but the country is the most significant within its total balance. At the end of the first quarter, the loan portfolio totaled $4.448 billion, a 46% increase over the same period in 2023. This growth was driven by credit cards, with a portfolio of $1.538 billion, up 132% year-on-year.

“The main product people demand from a financial institution is credit. It’s no use attracting customers only to disappoint them later. Now, we’re more optimistic about credit, and it makes sense to invest more in communication,” Mr. Chaves said. According to him, Mercado Pago decided to ramp up its credit offerings before its competitors because it is confident in its ability to “separate the wheat from the chaff.” “We have a unique data platform. If you buy on the online marketplace, we collect over 2,000 variables from that transaction. Based on this, we realized we could create a unique credit business.”

The idea, he added, is to continue issuing cards at a strong pace throughout 2024 and expand the overall portfolio.

Mercado Pago’s delinquency rate was 17.9% at the end of March, down from 18.7% in the previous quarter and 28.2% in the same period last year. However, the short-term delinquency indicator has been rising, reaching 9.3%, up from 8.2% in the fourth quarter and 7.8% in the first quarter of 2023.

Mr. Chaves attributed the quarterly increase in delinquencies to the seasonality of the start of the year and said the figures were within expectations. Regarding the trend for the year, he noted that as the credit market improves, the institution will naturally start lending to riskier groups. “With that comes greater monetization. Delinquency can’t be looked at in isolation.”

Without providing details, Mr. Chaves also mentioned that the institution is preparing a “broader package of benefits” for its credit card, to be used both within and outside the ecosystem. “It won’t be a typical points program,” he said.

Currently, the bank’s focus is not on the number of clients but on engagement, according to Mr. Chaves. Besides credit, another key factor for deepening customer relationships is the investment area. In March, Mercado Pago announced that it would offer a 105% CDI (Brazil’s interbank benchmark rate) return for users depositing or receiving at least R$1,000 per month in the bank. The institution, which went against market trends with this announcement, maintains that the measure is structural and sustainable.

“It’s not a promotional thing. A large part of the financial industry relies on user money to balance the books. We’re creating a business model that doesn’t depend on that. It’s an important differentiator,” Mr. Chaves said. “We are not ready to unveil our numbers yet, but the results of this measure have been above expectations.”

In the investment sector, Mercado Pago offers certificates of bank deposit (CDBs), three funds in partnership with Nikos—recently launched by the founders of Órama—and cryptocurrency trading. The plan is to soon launch LCIs (Real Estate Credit Bills) and LCAs (Agricultural Credit Bills), also through partnerships. With this, the institution believes it completes an appropriate offering for its client niche. The goal, according to Mr. Chaves, is to keep the offering simple. There is also an insurance area, provided through partners.

Currently, about 40% of Mercado Libre’s revenue comes from Mercado Pago. Specifically looking at the digital bank, Brazil represents more than half of the total revenue. In the first quarter, the bank generated $1.008 billion in revenue in Brazil, out of a total of $1.837 billion. After Brazil, the most significant markets are Argentina and Mexico.

In May, the institution applied for a banking license in Mexico. Due to the high rate of unbanked individuals and cash usage, the country is seen as an important growth avenue. Mexico has also been highlighted by Nubank as a priority market. Mr. Chaves said that the main competitor there is cash, suggesting there is ample room for growth for both institutions. “There’s so much open sea that I think both can grow at very accelerated rates without stepping on each other’s toes. That said, I obviously want to be the one that grows the most,” he added. According to him, the starting point in Mexico is solid due to the company’s e-commerce experience. “We can see the person far beyond the banking transaction.”

In terms of payments, where Mercado Pago began, the bank emphasized that it is increasingly able to diversify its base. Traditionally focused on micro-entrepreneurs, the company said it has been climbing the pyramid in the offline world, while in e-commerce it can serve large retailers.

Asked about the potential impacts of Cielo’s decision to delist its card acquirer, Mr. Chaves noted only that the option to offer an integrated payment and other services solution has proven to be a trend in the industry.

Regarding the possible effects of the situation on results in Rio Grande do Sul, devasted by floods, Mr. Chaves said the exposure to the state is similar to the region’s representation in GDP and, therefore, any impact would be small. “The priority is to support customers and employees.”

*Por Mariana Ribeiro, Fernando Torres, Talita Moreira — São Paulo

Source: Valor International

https://valorinternational.globo.com/