Yape continues to gain more and more users and, with the purpose of making their lives easier, is getting ready to incorporate the remuneration payment functionality. Raimundo Morales Llosa, CEO of Yape, provides the details.
How many users does Yape currently reach?
We are very happy with Yape’s results to date. We continue to gain the trust of Peruvians and grow more and more both in number of users and in transactions. Today we have almost 18 million Peruvians who are Yaperos and more than 3 million Bolivians. We passed 20 million yaperos a couple of months ago and we are very happy with the confidence they are giving us.
What do you think has been the recipe for more people to use Yape?
We believe that there are many benefits in digitizing payments or replacing the use of cash. One of them is security for users: it is no longer necessary to have cash in hand. Additionally, there are clear benefits in terms of productivity. Before, small businesses sometimes had to close in order to collect; Nowadays you can receive a Yape as if it were a WhatsApp. They also do not have to give credit to the customer if they run out of cash to give back. Then many benefits begin to emerge from using Yape.
The great success was how we focused on a very simple experience, very easy to use and as easy as cash.
Of the transactions that occur in the wallet, what percentage comes from business versus person-to-person operations?
It is very difficult to separate it precisely, because around 70% of Peruvians also have or are part of a business. So, on a daily basis, a person can be a consumer and, at the same time, a merchant. What we have identified is that, of the 18 million Yaperos, a little more than 3 million correspond to businesses. These businesses concentrate between 50 and 55% of the transactions made in Yape. So you could say that approximately half of Yape’s use corresponds to payments directed to an identified business.
As for the other half, it includes both payments between people and operations with businesses that may not yet be formally identified as such. But the most precise thing I can say is that between 50 and 60% of transactions go to a business, be it a small or micro business.
Have you been able to measure Yape’s contribution to business?
It is difficult to measure it exactly, precisely because of the wide use that Yape has. It has become almost an established custom in most businesses. If it’s not Yape, it’s some other digital wallet, but we definitely have a very strong presence. It is not that there is a business group that works completely with Yape and another group that lives without digital payments. That is why it is difficult to make a deeper measurement.
That said, what we do know is that the value is evident. If there were not, businesses and small businesses would not have adopted Yape so quickly or increased its use in the way they have.
What are people using Yape for?
If we analyze it, the average Yapero makes about 57 payments per month. Of those, almost 50 are in the physical world, in small businesses: paying for taxis, transportation, grocery shopping, restaurants… that is, in all day-to-day expenses, in the everyday economy. Then, there are about seven or eight monthly payments that correspond to other things: paying electricity or water bills, shopping at a store, recharging for a game. In that sense, the young segment is growing a lot, especially in the world of gaming.
Could the increased adoption of high-end phones also be playing a role in adoption?
Definitely. The expansion we have had in telephones, the so-called smartphones, and internet access through 3G or 4G networks throughout the country contribute significantly to the adoption of all digital applications, including Yape and other solutions. As this expansion progresses, it allows us to take Yape beyond cities and large urban centers. More and more adoption is being observed in more remote towns and areas. As this process continues, we believe that Yape will reach more corners of the country.
How is the adoption of Yape in rural areas?
We are seeing, for example, that in Peru there are many fairs where merchants from more remote towns come to sell their products to the city. It is in these spaces where we are beginning to affiliate new yaperos and generate that interaction, so that these people do not have to travel to get paid in the future or waste time in the process. In this way, we begin to digitize and bring financial education and its benefits to more remote areas.
Can you continue to increase the functionality you offer?
Yes. Our sights are set on solving the day-to-day life of the Yaperos, and that implies a very broad definition of our purpose. We went from having zero to currently having about 16 features, and they will probably continue to increase a little more.
However, we are also focused on educating and facilitating the use of the functionalities that already exist. For example, in the case of paying for services, one could think about paying the electricity, water or telephone bill, but each service company varies depending on the region. For this reason, we have had to affiliate companies from all areas of the country.
How many service companies can you make payments with?
Today we have 700 companies where you can pay for services; a year ago there were only 200. And that number will continue to grow so that Yaperos from all over the country can make all their payments from the app. That’s the kind of growth we’re working on.
Additionally, within Yape we have a section called Learn with Yape, which offers educational courses. We believe that this entire educational approach helps us better respond to the needs of Yaperos. Therefore, our growth is aimed both at expanding functionalities and promoting its use.
Any new features you can announce?
More than a specific announcement, we have always been testing many things. But, for example, a year ago we implemented the option of receiving remittances through Yape. We started with some partners from abroad, remittance companies that could send directly to Yape. We have recently continued to grow and now almost all international remittance companies can send money directly to Yape, instead of to an office where it normally has to be collected. Now you receive it in Yape in the same second that someone makes the transaction.
When will remittances be able to be sent from Yape?
Precisely, what we are implementing is that remittances can also be sent from Yape. We already have three or four countries enabled; We launched a month, month and a half ago, and the possibility is already underway. Our idea is to reach about 20 countries where money can be sent.
What other innovations are coming?
Another new functionality that will be relevant is the possibility of receiving salaries through Yape. That is something that we have been working on and that will soon be implemented so that workers can receive their salary through Yape, just as they do in a bank. They will access their remuneration without having to go to a bank office or open a formal account, etc., but rather they can do so through Yape itself. And the employer can send the salary directly through Yape.
And when would that be, for example?
We are already starting with the pilots. The functionality is almost ready. I think that in the next two months we will be affiliating and working with some companies that are very interested, because their workers also want to receive their salary through Yape. Once it’s tested for a month or two, we’ll probably do a more massive release early next year.
How is this salary payment going to operate through Yape?
Instead of giving an account number… many times, when you arrive at a company, they say: “Open an account”, they bring you the account number, etc., to see where they are going to pay your salary at the end of the month. Here what you are going to have to give is your phone number. If you are already a yapero, you give the employer or company the telephone number, and with that they will be able to pay you your salary. Then, everything becomes simpler. Our goal is to simplify the day-to-day life or make the yapero’s day-to-day life easier.
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