Digital Payments & Fintech · Bolivia
Fintech & digital payments rules in Bolivia (2026)
Bolivia shaded by its digital payments & fintech status
Bolivia has an in-force licensing regime for digital payments and fintech. Mobile-payment companies (ESPM) and electronic-card administrators (EATE) issuing electronic payment instruments are licensed and supervised by ASFI under the Financial Services Law (Ley 393), while the BCB operates a mandatory interoperable QR rail. In May 2025 the government enacted Decreto Supremo 5384, creating a dedicated 'Empresa de Tecnología Financiera' (ETF) licence — covering payments, blockchain, tokenized and virtual assets — that requires a constitution permit and operating licence from ASFI, with a regulatory sandbox and an adaptation deadline for existing fintechs.
Key points
Decreto Supremo N° 5384 (7 May 2025) and its implementing ASFI Resolution ASFI/540/2025 require fintechs to incorporate as financial entities and obtain a constitution permit plus an operating licence from ASFI, covering payment systems, blockchain solutions, tokenized assets and virtual-asset services (PSAV).
ASFI is the licensing/supervisory authority for the financial system, securities and insurance fintech activities; the BCB regulates and oversees the national payment system. ASFI announced it would regulate 209 fintechs (176 virtual-asset providers and 33 payment platforms).
Under Ley 393 and ASFI's Reglamento de Servicios de Pago, mobile-payment companies (Empresas de Servicio de Pago Móvil, ESPM) and electronic-card administrators (EATE) are licensed by ASFI and issue regulated electronic payment instruments (IEP), including mobile wallets.
The BCB mandates a common, interoperable QR standard across the financial system (banks, cooperatives, housing-finance and development-finance entities), with obligatory interconnection and free processing on digital channels; QR transfers grew 131% in 2025 vs 2024.
In October 2025 the BCB launched OpenBCB, framed under Ley 1670 (BCB Law) and the Reglamento de Cuentas Transitorias de Liquidación, to broaden access to QR-based electronic payments and enable non-bank participants to connect to the payment system.
The ETF regime introduces a regulatory sandbox (Entorno Controlado de Pruebas) under direct ASFI supervision; existing fintechs were given an adaptation window to obtain licences, with the deadline extended to 30 April 2026.
Bolivia - other topics
Last verified 5/25/2026 · Orientation, not legal advice - verify against the primary sources linked above. Explore the full world map →