LATAM: five markets, five different payment risks

NEXT.io has published a report on Mexico, Argentina, Peru, Chile and Colombia, and the useful bit for PSPs is not the headline country list. In these markets, payments are often tied to tax collection and regulatory enforcement just as much as they are to infrastructure.

1. Chile: the tax is collected through banks and processors. On 2 June 2026, SII reopened registration for operators to pay the digital VAT at 19%. Twenty-five platforms, representing 19 companies, registered. For operators that did not register, the tax is calculated on player deposits, and banks and card processors are required to withhold it. In July, SII named ten unregistered platforms, including bet365, PokerStars and 1win. About 1,000 domains are available to Chilean users, so those lists cover only a fraction of the market. For PSPs, that means a direct tax obligation on traffic that used to be treated as the operator’s problem.
2. Colombia: 2025 brought a temporary 19% VAT on deposits. A player deposited $100, and $84 landed in the account, with operators making up the difference through bonuses. Industry estimates put the peak burden at more than 70% of revenue. The Constitutional Court ruled the emergency decree unconstitutional and ordered DIAN to refund the amounts collected in 2026. Then, in March 2026, Decree 0240 introduced a 16% tax on games. It is triggered by the deposit, whether in cash, by transfer or in crypto, but calculated on GGR over a two-month period. The fiscal rule can be challenged in court; the payment flow changes faster than the industry can reorganize it.
3. Peru: no local bank account, no licence. Each licensee needs a Peruvian bank account for player deposits and a state guarantee from a Peruvian legal entity. Banks do not open those accounts for foreign companies. The market runs on Yape and Plin wallets and frequent micro-payments, while withdrawals clear in 3–5 minutes. Crypto is banned for gambling. For B2B providers, the withholding is 5% through a Peruvian entity and 20% on cross-border invoices without one.
4. Argentina: payments are the main drag on the legal market. All transactions are in pesos, and crypto is banned for licensed operators. In the city and province of Buenos Aires, transactions must go through state banks, although Mercado Pago remains available. H2 Gambling Capital estimates the legal market at about $1.1 billion GGR, with offshore at about $1.2 billion. Advisers put the unlicensed share at 80%. The black market works like “a bookmaker model from 40 years ago, moved to WhatsApp”: an agent collects deposits and pays out through a wallet, and there is nothing obvious to block, neither a website nor a processor.
5. Mexico: SPEI and OXXO dominate the payment mix. By estimate, SPEI and cards account for 60–70% of deposits. SPEI is valued for speed and the absence of chargebacks. OXXO is the other rail: cash vouchers across more than 18,000 stores. IEPS rose from 30% to 50% of GGR, but after recognized structuring the effective rate is around 12–15%, according to advisers.

The main takeaway from the report is simple enough: the stated tax rate is often the least reliable number in the room. For PSPs, the real question is where the payment rail becomes the collection mechanism, and who gets stuck with the withholding duty when the rule changes.