Citibanamex, PepsiCo and Amigo PAQ Expand Digital Financial Inclusion for Underbanked Retailers Through CoDi®

Mexico City – Citibanamex, PepsiCo Alimentos México and Amigo PAQ have formed an unprecedented partnership to promote financial inclusion and support more than 800,000 small retailers by providing them with digital financial tools. Thanks to this initiative, which invites people to work "without loose change in small shops" ("sin morralla en tienditas") through a cashless ecosystem, small businesses will be able to use the CoDi® electronic payment platform, offered by Banco de México, in their Citibanamex Mobile or Transfer® applications.

This comprehensive solution is offered to underbanked retailers who are part of the PepsiCo distribution network, providing them with access to bank accounts, digital payments, collections, working capital facilities and a credit line. Small merchants with a Citibanamex account will be able to operate from any mobile device associated with a Transfer®, Citibanamex Móvil or any other bank account with the CoDi® functionality.

Digital payments are free for retailers and will increase security in the distribution chain by replacing the use of cash and help them participate in the formal economy. Supporting small retailers, which are the source of income for up to three million families, means supporting the local economic recovery as communities face the health and economic crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

This model has already proven its success in Peru, where Citi and PepsiCo have worked together to expand digital inclusion for retailers since 2018. In September 2019, Citibanamex and PepsiCo implemented a first phase in Mexico, in the state of Querétaro, which also yielded positive results. Now the goal is to cover more than 17,000 distribution routes nationwide by the second half of 2021.

Rodrigo Kuri, Co-President and CEO for Digital, Distribution and Segments of Citibanamex, explained: "We have been working together for more than a year to continue expanding the digital collection and payments ecosystem and thereby reduce the use of cash in the country. With PepsiCo's distribution network of small businesses, Amigo PAQ's experience in microcredits and Citibanamex's banking infrastructure, we will jointly promote financial inclusion and digitization among the population that still does not use banking services in Mexico."

"Since the beginning of the pandemic, we have provided sustained accompaniment to shopkeepers in Mexico, who are our most important business partners. Now, through digitization, we seek to strengthen their operations. The United Nations (UN) has documented that the use of digital payments has increased the sales of these businesses by up to 30%, so bringing the tool closer to those who do not have it yet is a commitment that we have taken very seriously," commented Carlos Sánchez Abril, Senior Director of Innovation and Sales Transformation at PepsiCo Alimentos México.

Jorge López, CEO of Amigo PAQ, said, "For our company it is a great opportunity to be able to replicate our credit model in Mexico as a fast and secure solution for shopkeepers. We are confident that the results will be favorable for the small shops, contributing to financial inclusion as has happened in Guatemala and Peru."

Through the cashless modality, Citibanamex, PepsiCo and Amigo PAQ, will redefine the way in which collections and payments are made in Mexico, thereby contributing to digital adoption in an accessible, reliable and secure way for businesses.