The global banking system is experiencing a profound transformation. Traditional banking infrastructure is rapidly losing ground to the ubiquity of mobile phones and the rise of agent-based and telco-led financial services. The numbers reveal a structural shift that is bypassing banks—especially in rural and low-income markets—at an unprecedented scale.

ATMs vs. Mobile Phones: The Scale of Displacement

There are just 2.95 million ATMs worldwide, compared to 8.3 billion active mobile phones (BankMyCell, 2025). This means that for every ATM, there are about 2,820 cellphones. In rural areas, which account for 43% of the world’s population (World Bank, SP.RUR.TOTL.ZS), the ATM is increasingly irrelevant. The future of financial transactions is mobile, and the numbers confirm it.

Deposit Outflows and Digital Growth

In 2024, U.S. banks recorded their first deposit decline since 1995—a 4.8% drop (FinTech Weekly). Meanwhile, digital-first banks such as N26 reported revenue growth of 40% in the same period. Over 55% of U.S. customers now primarily manage their finances through mobile apps, and the global digital banking market is projected to reach $22.3 trillion by 2026 (EMB Global). Challenger banks and fintechs are not merely supplementing the market—they are capturing its core.

Shrinking Physical Presence

Major banks are closing branches at an unprecedented rate. NatWest closed 53 branches in 2025 alone, while HSBC’s digital transition has been described as “sluggish” (Finextra). The contraction of physical banking infrastructure is a global phenomenon.

Fintechs and Challenger Banks: Rapid Customer Acquisition

Trust Bank in Singapore became the country’s fourth-largest retail bank in just over a year, surpassing one million customers (The Straits Times). JPMorgan Chase’s UK digital platform reached 1.6 million customers in 2023 (Reuters). The revenue gap is widening: while legacy banks struggle for marginal deposit growth, digital-first banks are expanding at rates of 40% or more.

Micro-Transactions: The Global Bypass

The migration of micro-transactions away from traditional banks is most visible in rural and low-income markets, where agent networks and mobile money services—often run by telcos—have become the default. The Dominican Republic provides a concrete example of the scale of this bypass, even in the absence of a local fintech ecosystem.

• Population (mid-2024 est.): 11.5 million
• Rural share (official data): ≈ 85%
• Rural population using only feature phones (field surveys): ≈ 70%
• Active mobile phones (all types, global): 8.3 billion (BankMyCell, 2025)
• Feature (“button”) phones still in use (global): ≈ 1.1 billion (13%)
• Average fee for a sub-US $5 bank transfer in LICs: US $0.50–0.90 (10–18%) (MoneyTransfers)

Assuming each rural adult in the Dominican Republic makes one US $5 peer-to-peer transfer per day using a mobile wallet or agent network (with no bank involvement), and that a traditional domestic bank transfer of the same size would cost approximately US $0.60 in fees (mid-point of the 50 DOP Caribe-Express tariff):

• Rural users: 11.5 million × 85% ≈ 9.8 million
• Annual transfer flow: 9.8 million × $5 × 365 ≈ US $17.8 billion
• Forgone fee income: 9.8 million × $0.60 × 365 ≈ US $2.1 billion per year

Result: In this scenario, banks in the Dominican Republic forfeit approximately US $2 billion in fee revenue annually on micro-payments alone, while US $17–18 billion in transaction volume bypasses the formal banking rails. The same pattern is observable in many other countries with high rural populations and widespread mobile phone use.

Global Perspective: The Scale of Bypassed Banking

Extrapolating this model globally:

• Global rural population: ≈ 3.4 billion (World Bank)
• Assume 30% of those adults (≈ 1.0 billion) have access to a feature phone and mobile wallet/agent.
• Each makes one US $5 transfer per day.
• Average legacy-bank fee if using the formal system: 10% (US $0.50).
• Daily volume bypassing banks: 1.02 billion × $5 ≈ US $5.1 billion
• Annual volume bypassing banks: US $1.86 trillion
• Annual fee revenue forfeited: 10% × 1.86 trillion ≈ US $186 billion

Even if only one in four rural residents transacts daily and the average fee is halved, the annual loss remains between US $40–90 billion.

Structural Barriers to Reversal

• Physical reach: ATMs number just 2.95 million worldwide—a 2,800:1 ratio versus mobile phones. Branch networks are shrinking by 3–7% annually in most low-income countries.
• Cost structure: An on-us rural ATM transaction costs a bank approximately US $0.25–0.35 to service. Agent/mobile-money networks operate at less than US $0.08 per transaction, often subsidized by telcos.
• Device reality: Over a billion users have no smartphone; USSD/SMS wallets are their only digital finance channel. Banks rarely support USSD directly, while agent networks and telcos do.
• Behavioural lock-in: Once users trust a mobile wallet or agent for daily micro-transactions, larger remittances and savings migrate there as well, accelerating deposit leakage (already −4.8% in the U.S. legacy sector in 2024).

Lessons from M-Pesa: Missed Opportunities and Global Impact

A similar model has already demonstrated its transformative power elsewhere. In Kenya, M-Pesa—a mobile money service launched by Safaricom and Vodafone—now processes over $300 billion in transactions annually, with 51 million users and 59% of Kenya’s GDP flowing through its rails (Forbes, 2024). M-Pesa’s success was not the result of a bank-led initiative, but of a telco’s willingness to serve the unbanked and underbanked with simple, accessible technology.

Notably, Visa did not acquire M-Pesa. Instead, in 2022, M-Pesa and Visa partnered to launch the M-Pesa GlobalPay virtual Visa card, enabling M-Pesa users to make international online payments (Safaricom). The ownership of M-Pesa remains with Safaricom and Vodacom, who acquired the brand from Vodafone in 2020.

In 2013, a project with similar ambitions was proposed to banks in the Dominican Republic, aiming to bring agent-based, mobile-enabled financial services to rural populations. The proposal was dismissed as “excess service.” In contrast, M-Pesa’s model has since generated billions in revenue and transformed financial inclusion in multiple countries.

Conclusion: A Structural Shift, Not a Passing Trend

In countries with high rural populations and limited banking infrastructure, billions in annual fee income are bypassed on micro-transactions, with trillions in transaction volume moving outside the formal banking system. Globally, over $186 billion in micro-transaction revenue is now captured by telco-led or agent-based rails—roughly double the combined 2024 profits of the five largest U.S. banks.

The data is unambiguous: the migration of micro-transactions to mobile and agent networks is not a marginal trend, but a fundamental reordering of the financial landscape. The infrastructure and business models of traditional banks are being outpaced by the scale, efficiency, and reach of mobile-first and agent-based solutions—especially in rural and low-income markets.

Sources:

• BankMyCell: How Many Phones Are in the World? (2025)
• World Bank Rural Population Data (SP.RUR.TOTL.ZS)
• FinTech Weekly
• EMB Global: Digital Banking Market Size
• MoneyTransfers: Caribe Express Fees
• The Straits Times: Trust Bank Hits 1 Million Customers
• Reuters: JPMorgan Chase UK Digital Bank
• Finextra: HSBC Branch Closures
• Forbes: M-Pesa’s Global Impact
• Safaricom: M-Pesa GlobalPay Virtual Visa Card

For further context on the 2013 project offered to Dominican banks, see:

• Project details in Spanish
• Project details in Russian

The numbers, trends, and structural realities point to a new era in financial services—one where mobile and agent-based platforms are not just competing with, but overtaking, traditional banking infrastructure, especially in rural and low-income markets.

Brief
The U.S. merchant account services market is a battlefield. New tech disruptors are storming the field, legacy giants are digging in, and a handful of former titans are losing ground fast. This is not just a story of numbers, but of people, technology, and the relentless drive for relevance. Here’s who’s winning, who’s losing, and why it matters for your next career move, your sales strategy, or your business’s bottom line.

The SMB Payments Market at a Glance

Sources: TSG Payments, Business News Today, company filings, industry interviews

The SMB Payments Rising Stars: The Disruptors Changing the Game

Shopify POS
Shopify is no longer just an e-commerce platform. Its POS system is now the go-to for D2C brands and pop-ups, letting retailers unify online and in-store sales, launch new locations in weeks, and leverage deep customer data.

“Shopify POS gives us one customer view whether they click or tap a card. That’s been a game-changer for our retail expansion.”
— Travis Boyce, Head of Global Retail, Allbirds (Shopify Blog)

Retail on Demand
This shift toward omnichannel isn’t just theory. In May 2024, sleepwear brand Lunya opened three NYC pop-ups in just 21 days using Shopify’s “tap-to-open” iPhone POS. Local press called it “retail on demand,” and Shopify’s stock jumped 7% that week as analysts cited the event as proof of Shopify’s physical retail momentum.
Read more – Women’s Wear Daily, 5/17/24

Toast
Toast is the restaurant industry’s secret weapon. With features like ingredient tracking, kitchen displays, and payroll, it’s not just a POS—it’s a full restaurant operating system. Sweetgreen credits Toast with reducing waste by 15% and speeding up service by 20%.

“Toast isn’t a POS; it’s our sous-chef.”
— Jonathan Neman, CEO, Sweetgreen (Business News Today)

Tip War Fallout
This focus on specialization paid off during Toast’s “tip war” controversy in 2023. After media and customer backlash over automatic tip prompts, Toast responded by rolling out customizable tip screens and launching a “restaurant tech bootcamp” for staff. This quick, industry-specific response restored trust and improved client retention, showing how vertical focus can turn a crisis into a loyalty win.
Read more – The Wall Street Journal, 7/18/23

Helcim
Helcim is winning over cost-conscious SMBs with radical transparency. Its viral moment came when a Reddit thread revealed real savings and honest pricing, leading to a 50% spike in sign-ups.

“Dropped my processing bill from $400 to $320 the first month—no PCI junk fees, no ‘non-qualified’ surcharges.”
— u/mainstreetbooks (r/smallbusiness)

Reddit Goes Viral
This shift toward transparency isn’t just theory. In 2024, a viral Reddit post titled “Helcim vs. Everyone” saw dozens of business owners share screenshots of their savings after switching to Helcim. The company’s CEO even joined the discussion, answering questions directly. This public engagement and openness led to a measurable surge in new customers, confirming that transparent pricing is now a competitive necessity.
Read more – Helcim Blog, 6/2/24

The SMB Payments Giants: Defending Their Turf

Square (Block)
Still the king for microbusinesses and retail, Square’s ecosystem is unmatched for simplicity and breadth. Its new AI-driven loyalty and inventory tools are helping retailers like The Sill boost sales and reduce out-of-stocks.

“Square’s AI-driven inventory suggestions have helped us keep our bestsellers in stock and cut lost sales.”
— Eliza Blank, CEO, The Sill (Business News Today)

AI Boosts Sales
The power of AI isn’t just hype. In January 2025, Square rolled out its AI Loyalty Lab to 10,000 pilot merchants. Early results showed a 7% increase in average basket size. The move was covered by Forbes, which called it “a shot across the bow at legacy POS.”
Read more – Forbes, 1/15/25

Clover (Fiserv)
Clover’s strength is its deep integration with banks like Bank of America, making it the default for many new business accounts. Its hardware and app marketplace keep it competitive.

“Our partnership with Clover has made it easier for small businesses to get the tools they need, right from their bank.”
— Sharon Miller, President of Small Business, Bank of America (Business News Today)

Bank Partnership Pays
This strategy isn’t just theoretical. In Q1 2024, Bank of America began bundling Clover POS with new business checking accounts. The result was a 25% jump in new merchant accounts and a surge in positive reviews, demonstrating the power of bank partnerships in driving POS adoption.
Read more – American Banker, 4/2/24

PayPal/Zettle, Stripe, Adyen
These giants dominate online and hybrid commerce, with Stripe and Adyen especially strong among tech-forward and global SMBs.

DOJ Cracks Down
The importance of fair competition was highlighted in 2023, when Stripe agreed to a $120 million settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice over alleged anti-competitive practices. The company responded by opening its API to more third-party integrations, which analysts say helped it regain trust among developers and SMBs.
Read more – Reuters, 9/14/23

The SMB Payments Losers: Why the Old Guard Is Retreating

Worldpay (FIS), TSYS (Global Payments), Elavon
Once titans, these legacy providers are losing contracts and sales talent at an accelerating pace.

• Worldpay lost a multi-state apparel chain to Shopify after a repricing standoff; leaked memos cite “product gaps vs. omnichannel challengers.” (Brand Spur NG)
• TSYS and Elavon are seeing double-digit attrition as reps defect to disruptors and SMBs demand better tech and clearer pricing.

Sales Team Exodus
The impact of outdated tech and poor support became clear in late 2024, when a viral LinkedIn post by a former Worldpay sales manager described a “mass exodus” of reps to Square and Toast. The post cited “opaque quotas and outdated tech” as key reasons for leaving, sparking a debate on Glassdoor and highlighting how lack of support and innovation can drive talent away.
Read more – LinkedIn, 11/18/24

The SMB Payments Talent War: How the Best Recruit, Train, and Keep Sales Teams

Bootcamp Boosts Retention
The value of investing in sales talent was proven when, after launching its “Restaurant Tech Bootcamp,” Toast saw a 30% increase in new-hire retention and poached dozens of sales leaders from legacy providers, as reported by Business News Today.
Read more – Business News Today, 8/15/24

The SMB Payments Market players. What Should You Do?

For Job Seekers:

• Don’t just ask about commission—ask about inbound leads, demo support, and product fit.
• Choose companies that invest in onboarding and have a product you’re proud to sell.

For HR and MASP Leaders:

• Speed up onboarding, invest in training, and be transparent about comp and quotas.
• Build partnerships and vertical expertise to stand out.

For SMB Owners:

• Use the competition to your advantage: get multiple quotes, demand clear pricing, and ask for references.
• Choose a provider that understands your industry, not just payments in general.

The Bottom Line

The war for America’s SMB payments is being won by those who move fast, solve real problems, and treat both merchants and employees as partners. The old playbook is obsolete. The new one is being written by rising stars, defended by giants, and abandoned by those who can’t keep up.

Sources & Further Reading

• TSG Payments, 2025 Directory Rankings
• Business News Today: Top POS platforms in 2025
• Shopify Blog: Merchant Services
• Brand Spur NG: Top Ten Payments Companies 2024
• Newsweek: Best Merchant Account Service Providers 2025
• Women’s Wear Daily: Shopify Pop-Up Lunya
• Forbes: Square AI Loyalty Lab Launch
• American Banker: Bank of America Clover POS Bundle
• Helcim Blog: Helcim vs. Legacy Processors
• LinkedIn: Worldpay Sales Exodus
• Reuters: Stripe DOJ Settlement
• The Wall Street Journal: Toast Tip Feature Controversy

Join the Discussion:
Is this war good for SMBs, or does it just create confusion? Can legacy giants stage a comeback, or are they doomed to retreat? Will the next big winner be a tech disruptor, a niche specialist, or a company we haven’t even heard of yet?
Share your stories, predictions, and questions below. The next chapter in the battle for America’s SMB payments is being written right now—will you be part of it?

If you, a respected Russian Apple user, do not want to switch to Android, carry cards or stick stickers on your favorite gadget, then there is only one way out – to pay via QR. In some countries, it is through “quaring” that most transactions take place. Today we will analyze how QR payments work and why their share is growing by leaps and bounds.

If you decide to pay for udon at a Shanghai diner with a card (even if that card is Union Pay), then it is very likely that Uncle Liao will make a surprised face and hand you a card with a QR code. Indeed, in China, almost all everyday payments are made by scanning black and white squares.

Instead of a price tag

Yes, China is the undisputed leader in QR payments. But many other countries are also actively getting used to them. Quaring is especially developed in Asia – for example, in Thailand, South Korea, India, Uzbekistan and other countries. But in other regions, it is far from dead and is actively growing. In Russia, QR-payments also feel good: the Russian Central Bank has developed them before as a feature of the Faster Payments System, and in the last year and a half, for obvious reasons, their share is completely flew up into the sky.

A variety of analytical offices (for example, this one) predict that in a couple of years more than 2 billion people around the world will use qar payments on a daily basis.

So, it is likely that payment via QR will become the dominant payment format in the near future, pushing cards into the background (I do not guarantee, but there is a big chance).

So, how does QR-ing work in general, what it is, and how it is better or worse than other methods. Let’s sort out.

1. Why does a QR code get along well with payments?

I would like to start with one simple thought:

A QR code, also known as a Quick-Response Code, is just some kind of information, but encoded as a set of black and white particles.

This information can be anything, for example:

• The history of some statue in the museum. Then we draw a kuar on the nameplate and glue it next to the pedestal.
  
• Information about your covid vaccination. In this case, the black and white ornament will appear in a special section on gosulugs.
  
• Or, for example, your bank account details.
  

In the latter case, we will talk about QR-payments (or, as it is sometimes called, “quaring”). But in absolutely all cases, the QR code will remain only a way to transfer information. In other words, QR payments are not some super-unique technology, but just the use of the most common QR codes in one particular area.

But it just so happened that the QR code has several valuable features at once, making it an ideal technological basis for a whole galaxy of new payment services. And here are the features:

• First, a QR code is an extremely undemanding thing. To display a QR code, you only need a screen, and to scan it, you only need a more or less tolerable camera. Simply put, a simple smartphone, which everyone has in the modern world, is quite enough. African tribes and Amish communes will be put out of brackets. However, no one forbids showing a QR code on a piece of paper. You can even attach a payment QR code to a cat – and then you get a payment QR cat (I hope you will forgive me this joke).

• Secondly, QR codes offer a huge number of combinations. The number of unique combinations of black and white squares is so titanic that I will not give it here. Just to mention that Chinese WeChat uses more than half a trillion (!) Kuars every year, and this is not even 0.001% of all possible combinations. In short, no matter how much the Chinese buy udon, we will have enough unique QR codes for a long time to come.
  
• Finally, over the past few years, everyone has learned to use QR codes. I think even grandmothers in the village have heard at least something about it (unlike these NFCs of yours).

Add to the above the fact that global payment systems (Visa, Mastercard and others) at one time forgot to cover the payment coir market, and you will get a suitable alternative tool for payments.

It is not surprising that in the last 5-15 years (depending on the country) it has been adopted by operators of national payment infrastructures and fintech services of digital ecosystems (more on this below).

2. What kind of payment QR codes are there?

So, although the QR code itself is an absolutely ingenious thing, it would not turn out to be called rocket science. Of course, there are also technological differences between the coirs – for example, the ways of encoding information (numeric, alphanumeric, byte, etc.).

But in this article, we will not dive deep into this – if you are interested, you can google 100500 technical articles about the technical nuances of these things.

Now we are talking about QR payments. And here, too, there are differences:

• The first is the source of QR. Who shows the QR code, and who scans – the seller or the buyer.
  
• The second is the saturation of the QR code with information. You can make a basic quarry containing bank account information. You can add some additional information to it – for example, the purpose of the payment. And also a specific amount, but here we are already moving on …
  
• … to point number three: the dynamism of the QR code. Perhaps this is the main technological difference. A QR code can be static or dynamic, and here we need to dwell in more detail.

A static QR simply contains the bank account details of the seller or buyer. In this case, after scanning, you will have to enter the amount yourself.

This is an unnecessary action for the client (i.e. complicating the client path, which is always not very good), but such a code can be pasted somewhere near the cash register and sending customers to pay with a slight movement of the hand.

Dynamic QR code is cool and advanced. But there is a nuance – if the seller wants to generate dynamic quarries, then you won’t get off with a cardboard box. You will have to buy additional equipment that can handle this very dynamic.

There are also several intermediate modifications. For example, when a static QR code leads to a dynamic web page. In this case, the QR code can be printed and not changed, but the payment chain will be extended by an extra load.

Or another option – a static QR contains a link to a dynamic page, from which, when scanning, the actual data is pulled into the payment application. As a result, a nipple system is obtained, when the QR can be left unchanged, but the buyer does not need to open an extra page either. True, the likelihood that something crookedly pulls up is growing.

A few words should be said about the source of quar. In the vast majority of cases, the QR is created by the seller (then it is Merchant presented QR), and the buyer reads it.

But there is also the reverse mechanics – the buyer opens the QR code of his bank account, and the seller scans it, thereby debiting the required amount. In my opinion, this is the most convenient way for the buyer (although not the safest – more on that below), but the seller will need a little more functional equipment.

3. Are QR Payments Perfect?

In fairness, it must be said about the shortcomings of quaring. They are like this:

• The first is “Internet addiction”. Card payments can exist without the Internet. If it does, then payment terminals can read data from a card or NFC, store it in their memory, and when they turn on the Internet, transfer it to the payment system. QR without the Internet turns into a pumpkin from the word “absolutely”. So, if your store is located in the basement with a poor network, then quartering may be contraindicated for you (the buyer will stupidly not be able to load the page after scanning).
  
• The second is: some security questions. The crooks are not asleep here either. Let’s say you show a QR with your account details sewn in at a small stall, the seller of which turns out to be a scoundrel. He quietly takes a picture of your code, and your money cried. Or another option – while the seller is gaping, the scammer will stick his scammer kuar over the real one. As a result, the money will not be spent on paying for your goods. However, scam is possible with bank cards. So, I will assume that quaring is not much inferior to him here (unless crooks use other methods).
  

• The third disadvantage is that QR payments require quite a lot of gestures. You need to take your phone out of your pocket or purse, then open the quaring application, then the camera will start to blunt during the scanning process… Then you will press the “translate” button, and the Internet will turn off, and the confirmation will hang. As a result, you stand in front of the cash register like a fool and think: “Have the money been written off, or do you need to do everything again?” It is because of such a hell of fine motor skills that many people initially spit on these coirs of yours and simply pay with a card.
  
• In addition, often there is no cashback for QR-ing, or it is significantly less than for cards. Such alignment, for example, in the Russian Federation. The reason is that the commission for QR is lower than for cards, which means that banks have nowhere to take budgets for cashback. However, this is not the case in all countries – in some, all fat cashbacks, on the contrary, are in QR payments (depending on how the size of commissions correlates in a particular country). However, this is not such a minus. Or rather, for whom it is like – a minus for the consumer, but a huge plus for business.
  

4. Why is QR-ing is especially preferred in Asia?

QR-payments are highly developed in many countries, but guys from Asia (including, of course, the main fans of quaring – the Chinese, as well as the founders of the technology: the Japanese) and residents of some other so-called. “developing” countries.

Why is that? I suppose that the explanation lies in the competitive situation in the markets during the years of the emergence and initial development of technology.

In the USA and Western Europe, by the beginning of the 21st century, card payments were already highly developed. Local banks actively issued Visa, Mastercard, AmEx and other cards, and the population was already accustomed to their daily use. Therefore, it was much more difficult for any exotic payment methods to squeeze out a share of the payment market.

But in all sorts of Thailand, Korea, Brazil and India, this was easier:

The penetration of cards is much less; for a significant proportion of the population, payment cards were still exotic at that time. Consequently, most merchants (perhaps, except for large chain stores) had no incentive to spend money on purchasing payment terminals. But everyone could put a sign with a QR code next to the cash register.

Then the classic “circles on the water” began. Business began to offer customers QR payment → The population began to taste it and slowly realize that the new payment method is generally not bad and works in many places → Demand for quaring from buyers has increased → Business began to introduce quaring even more actively. And so on in a circle.

It is worth noting that this spiral of growth would not have been possible without the active involvement of two important players:

• Firstly, national payment infrastructure operators (mainly based on local central banks). They found out that the method is quite working. So, you need to ride this wave. Well, you know, in order to reduce the share of cash (and, on the contrary, increase taxes), squeeze the market for all kinds of Visas with Mastercards …
  
  And in general, with the help of quaring, increase the share of domestic payments under your direct control. As a result, the states began to saw national payment QR services. Here is the Indian UPI, and the Brazilian PiX, and the Thai PromptPay, and, of course, our SBP. By the way, this logic may partially explain why quaring has become especially popular in countries with active state participation in the economy.
  
• Secondly, consumer ecosystems that have begun to actively adopt quaring. As you know, the core of any self-respecting ecosystem should be a payment service that enhances the flow of client activity between different products. You know, so that the user of an online cinema has a financial incentive to try food delivery or a taxi aggregator (or whatever else ecosystems usually have).
  
  As a result, in countries with strong national ecosystems, QR payments have become an important payment method. Here are the Korean KakaoPay, and the Kazakh Kaspi, and of course, the Chinese WeChat and Alipay.
  

Both “national” and “ecosystem” quarings had their own trump cards up their sleeves. State services set reduced acquiring commissions (much lower than card fees), funded from the budget.

Ecosystems, on the other hand, perfectly crossed quaring with their other advantages – for example, they accrued cashbacks that could be used in their other products. It was also easier to teach users of popular ecosystems to open the application for scanning – after all, the native interface is familiar and familiar.

As a result, QR further strengthened its position in the payment markets of these countries. Yes, if you do not take China into account, then kuaring is still difficult to call the main way. Rather the first among the alternatives. But its share is growing. And who knows what will happen next.

Friends, if the article came to you, then be sure to like it and send it to a friend who is fond of payments / fintech / banking.

Soon I will write the second part, where I will analyze in more detail the key QR services in different countries – SBP, Chinese WeChat and AliPay, Indian UPI, Thai PromptPay and many others.

Alexey Podkletnov

I analyze changes in business, industries and companies. More interesting things on my TG channel Disruptors.

Andrey Prokhorov

Editor-In-Chief, LaGente.do

aprokhorov@lagente.do

…

Preface: All newborn children come into this world naked and barefoot, devoid of vision, possessions, roles, or skills. These attributes, the trappings of society, are not inherent but rather imposed by the world around them. Scientists believe that during the first four years of life, a child retains its unaltered, core identity, a pure reflection of their authentic self. It is only then, gradually, that this genuine self begins to be replaced by the myriad social roles and expectations necessary for survival in society.

In our photography and reviews, we embark on a quest to unearth and display this real essence of the people we describe. Our mission is to peel away the layers of societal conformity and expectations, revealing the inherent beauty and soul of each individual. Through our lenses and words, we strive to capture not only who a person is but also the environment in which they exist, and the activities that fill their lives.

We invite you, our readers, to join us on this remarkable journey. As we explore not only the Dominican Republic but also the broader world, we seek to shed light on the pure, unadulterated humanity that lies beneath the roles and masks we wear. Our aim is to provide you with an authentic glimpse of the people who call this planet home, transcending borders, social status, conditions, and roles.

Our characters are people from all walks of life, from motorcycle taxi drivers to presidents. We find in everyone their inner essence and beauty, and we are committed to showcasing this beauty regardless of where it may be found. Our readers: living in the Country and outside it, reach or poor, workers, teachers, government officers, doctors and painters, expats and tourists, people of all circumstances and positions of life may find inspiration and connection in these lives and stories by these characters in our articles originating from diverse cultures and backgrounds.

Welcome to our newspaper, where we are dedicated to showing people as they truly are, wherever they may be, and in doing so, celebrating the universal and unfiltered beauty that resides within each one of us.

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Editor-in-Chief

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