33253 - Safetypay

Who We Are
Who We Are

IFC is the largest global development institution focused on the private sector in developing countries. By encouraging growth, IFC advances economic development, creates jobs and improves the lives of people.
More About Us
About IFC

Our Leadership

Development Partners
Accountability

Learn more about accountability
Annual Report

Download the Report
What We Do
What We Do

IFC advances economic development and improves the lives of people by encouraging the growth of the private sector in developing countries. We achieve this by investing in impactful projects, mobilizing other investors, and sharing expertise.
What We Do Overview
SOLUTIONS

Our products and services
OUR PRIORITIES

Climate Business

Fragile & Conflict Afflicted Situations

Gender

Mobilizing Private Capital

Sustainability
SECTORS & EXPERTISE

Agribusiness & Forestry

Creative Industries

Education

Financial Institutions

Funds

Health

Infrastructure

Manufacturing

Public-Private Partnerships

Tourism, Retail & Property

Trade & Supply Chain Finance

Venture Capital

Working Upstream
Where We Work
Where We Work

As the largest global development institution focused on the private sector, IFC operates in more than 100 countries around the globe. We apply lessons learned in one region to solve problems in another.
Overview
By Region

Africa

East Asia and Pacific

Europe

Latin America and the Caribbean

Middle East and Central Asia

South Asia
Our Impact
Our Impact

Our impact improves lives. IFC brings a clear set of advantages to the world’s most challenging markets. Including a history of innovation, a global mandate, and a determination to achieve measurable development impact.
Our Impact Overview
PRINCIPLES & MEASUREMENT

Impact Investing at IFC

Measuring and Monitoring (AIMM)

Evaluation

Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

Owned by 186 member countries and consistently rated AAA/Aaa. IFC aims to achieve our mission of promoting development by providing debt and equity to the private sector, through a range of benchmark and bespoke products.

For Partners

For Investors

Get in Touch

Summary of Investment Information

Project Number

33253

Company Name

SAFTPAY, INC.

Date SPI Disclosed

May 3, 2013

Country

Latin America and the Caribbean Region

Region

Latin America and the Caribbean

Projected Board Date

May 17, 2013

Environmental Category

C - No Impact

Status

Active

Last Updated Date

May 10, 2025

Department

TMT, Venture Capital & Funds

Industry

Financial Markets

Previous Events

Approved : May 22, 2013
Signed : May 31, 2013
Invested : Jul 2, 2013

Sector

Online payments, ecommerce payments

Project Description

Safetypay enables consumers without credit cards to buy goods and services online (e-commerce) by paying directly from their bank account using online banking. The system is more secure than payment by credit card, has lower cost and risk for retailers and benefits countries with low payment card penetration. The company’s service can expand the availability of ecommerce alongside financial inclusion strategies without the need to push people onto costly payment cards. It expands the ability of companies in developing countries to sell goods and services into other countries online and increases exports.

Sponsor / Cost / Location

Product Line	IFC Investment (million USD)
Risk Management
Guarantee
Loan
Equity	7.0

Development Impact

Safetypay creates an alternative online payment system that benefits merchants in countries with underdeveloped online payment systems and allows them to export their goods by selling them online.
The company''s system provides banked low income consumers in developing countries the ability to benefit from the lower cost, greater transparency and wider availability of goods and services delivered by ecommerce from which they are otherwise excluded because they do not qualify for credit cards or credit cards are simply too expensive.
The company''s system creates incentives to obtain bank accounts rather than just a prepaid card or another transactional payment service and thereby supports financial inclusion. As an investor the IFC can ensure that the benefits offered by Safetypay are increasingly made available to consumers and merchants in developing countries.

Banks in developing countries which often do not generate much or any income from issuing credit cards and merchant acquiring (enabling merchants to accept credit cards) gain a new source of fee income and can monetize their online banking service. Safetypay is already working on technology that will enable unbanked customers to purchase goods online by obtaining vouchers from banks which generate fee income and cross selling opportunities for the banks and, again, creates an opportunity for financial inclusion.

Safetypay primarily provides benefits to clients of banks in countries where credit card penetration is low and to merchants that sell from these countries. To deliver these benefits the company needs to establish relationships with banks in developing countries in Latin Amercia and developed markets and sees the IFC as an ideal partner to assist with this process and help to understand the country, financial sector and institutional risk better.
The company launched its services from Peru and hopes to capture other, in some cases more developed markets like Brazil, Argentina, Mexico and the US and sees the IFC as a conduit to make this transition. An involvement by the IFC will help to convince banks and merchants across Latin America to rely on Safetypay. The IFC is one of the few sources to provide value-added capital at this early stage and the IFC''s involvement will likely trigger interest and investment by other, larger commercial investors.
Safetypay offers merchants the ability to eliminate the disadvantages of accepting credit cards (very high fees, fraud risk, requirement for promotions, lack of access to data) and breaks the strong positon of the cards in ecommerce. The company is concerned that in some markets the vested interests of card companies may lead to unfair practices and hopes that involvement by the IFC will ensure a level playing field.

E&S Category Rationale / Risks and Mitigation

This project will yield environmental benefits in the form of less energy usage and greenhouse gas emissions than non-electronic remittances would yield. Otherwise, with no infrastructure owned by Safetypay, the key E&S risks and impacts will be in the management of Safetypay''s human resources, leased spaces, and equipment, and those risks and impacts are expected to be low. Safetypay will be required to develop and document a grievance mechanism for its workers, and otherwise to manage its facilities, workers, and contractors in compliance with IFC Performance Standards.

Contacts

For Inquiries About the Project, Contact

Manuel Montero, CEO
1920 Meridian Avenue, Second Floor
Miami Beach, FL 33139
Tel. 786-294-6411, Ext. 223
Fax 305-538-4845
Cell 305-586-9043
mailto:mmontero@safetypay.com
http://www.safetypay.com

For Inquiries and Comments About IFC, Contact

General IFC Inquiries
IFC Corporate Relations
2121 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington DC 20433
Telephone: 202-473-3800
Fax: 202-974-4384
E Mail: Webmaster

IFC supports its clients in addressing environmental and social issues arising from their business activities by requiring its real sector clients to set up and administer appropriate grievance mechanisms and/or procedures to address complaints from Affected Communities in relation to environmental and social issues arising from IFC's clients' business activities. Since 2012, IFC's Financial Intermediary clients applying the Performance Standards are required to develop External Communications Mechanisms to receive and review inquiries or complaints from any interested party regarding the E&S risks and impacts of their operations.

For IFC projects that are active or under consideration, individual(s), or their authorized representative(s), who allege they have been or will be adversely affected by E&S risks or impacts arising from IFC's clients' business activities, may submit a complaint to IFC directly for consideration. When receiving an E&S complaint, IFC engages with complainants and works with its clients to find solutions to E&S concerns as quickly and efficiently as possible.

Complaints can be submitted to IFC online at www.ifc.org/escomplaints or by email to EScomplaints@ifc.org.

IFC complaint response is separate from and complementary to IFC’s clients’ project level grievance mechanisms and IFC’s Independent Accountability Mechanism (CAO). Lodging a complaint directly with IFC does not, at any time, restrict access to CAO.

Affected communities have unrestricted access to the Compliance Advisor Ombudsman (CAO), the independent accountability mechanism for IFC and MIGA. CAO facilitates the resolution of complaints related to IFC and MIGA projects and sub-projects, undertakes reviews of IFC’s and MIGA’s environmental and social compliance, fosters public accountability for their commitments, and enhances the environmental and social performance of IFC and MIGA.

Independent of IFC and MIGA management and reporting directly to the IFC and MIGA Boards of Executive Directors, CAO helps resolve issues raised about the environmental and social impacts of projects through a neutral, collaborative, problem-solving approach via its Dispute Resolution function. It also reviews IFC’s and MIGA’s compliance with environmental and social policies, assesses related harm, and recommends remedial actions through its Compliance function. Additionally, CAO provides advice to IFC, MIGA, and their Boards to enhance environmental and social sustainability performance and minimize the risk of harm.

Complaints may relate to environmental and social harm regarding any aspect of the planning, implementation, or impact of a project or sub-project, and can be made by any individual, group, community, entity, or other party affected or likely to be affected by the environmental or social impacts of an IFC- or MIGA-financed business activity.

Complaints can be submitted by any of the following methods:

Online form: available at https://www.cao-ombudsman.org/
Mail/Hand Delivery to: 2121 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20433, USA
Voice mail: +1 202 458 1973
Email: cao@worldbankgroup.org
SMS, WhatsApp, Telegram, and Signal: +1 202 650 2627

CAO receives and addresses complaints in accordance with the CAO Policy, which can be accessed at: https://www.cao-ombudsman.org/policies-guidelines.

This Summary of Investment Information (SII) is prepared by IFC to disclose a factual summary of the main elements of the potential investment. Its purpose is to enhance the transparency of IFC’s activities. For any project documentation or data included or attached herein, whether prepared by the project sponsor or otherwise, authorization has been given for public release by the project sponsor. IFC considers that this SII is of adequate quality for release to the public, but has not necessarily independently verified all of the project information therein. It is distributed in advance of IFC Board of Directors’ consideration and may be periodically updated thereafter. Board dates are estimates only and this document should not be construed as presuming the outcome of the Board Directors’ decision. The following SII is disclosed in accordance with IFC's Access to Information Policy (AIP) that went into effect on January 1, 2012.

The map is for illustrative purposes and does not imply the expression of any opinion on the part of the World Bank, concerning the legal status of any country or territory or concerning the delimitation of frontiers or boundaries. Country borders or names do not necessarily reflect the World Bank Group's official position. In some cases, available project location information is limited to the country of the project's activities. Locations are approximate.

Projects

Summary of Investment Information

Project Description

Sponsor / Cost / Location

Development Impact

E&S Category Rationale / Risks and Mitigation

Similar Projects

Contacts

Projects

Summary of Investment Information

Project Description

Sponsor / Cost / Location

Project Sponsor and Major Shareholders of Project Company

Total Project Cost and Amount and Nature of IFC's Investment

IFC's Investment as Approved by the Board

Location of Project and Description of Site

Development Impact

Anticipated Impact Measurement & Monitoring (AIMM) Assessment

IFC's Role and Additionality

E&S Category Rationale / Risks and Mitigation

Environmental & Social Categorization Rationale

Environmental & Social Management System (ESMS)

Press-Release

Related Environmental Document

Similar Projects

Contacts

Information on E&S Complaints and Grievance Mechanisms

Disclaimer