News

The number of online transactions in Panama has skyrocketed in recent years, as more and more Panamanians embrace the digital economy.

The number of digital transactions in Panama grew by 65% growth in the last four years in Panama, Rodrigo Santoro, vice president of Visa Consulting & Analytics for Latin America and the Caribbean, told El Capital Financero.

In some ways, the news is simply a sign of the times, as online sales become more prevalent. But it also represents the growing sophistication of Panama as a consumer nation. Panama has some of the best Internet services in the region, and the population is wedded to their cell phones, just like any other fast-growing country.

Around the world, online transactions boomed during the COVID-19 pandemic. But Visa is finding that the trend has continued in the wake of the pandemic.

“The pandemic only accelerated the migration of payments towards a more digital world and that is still going strong today,” Santoro said. “Many consumers lost their fear of buying online, despite the growth of face-to-face transactions.”

Online transactions are “an irreversible trend,” he told the paper. And, at least from Visa’s perspective, it is a positive for the community, as we move away from the world of cash and plastic cards. Even the old plastic credit card is going away as people switch to digital points, part of what Visa calls the “deconstruction of physical plastic.”

For a country like Panama, the move away from the old system has many advantages. “It greatly facilitates the shopping process for all consumers who no longer have to carry more physical cards,” Santoro said. “Also this evolution of technology has helped improve the consumer experience by making these transactions more secure.”

According to the data, department stores were the largest beneficiary of online purchases, although education sites played a large role, a reflection of their growing importance during the pandemic, the Visa executive said.