CEO & Founder, Ualá
Ualá, la tarjeta para los millenials
Fragmento de "Metadata" emitido el Jueves 5 de Octubre de 2017.
Pierpaolo Barbieri, fundador de Ualá, nos explica como funciona el primer banco online del país.
About Pierpaolo Barbieri
Pierpaolo Barbieri, founder and CEO of Ualá, announced in March 2026 the closing of a $195 million Series F investment round led by Allianz. He stated that the company aims to reach consolidated profitability in 2027, with a potential future listing on a U.S. stock exchange. Barbieri attributed a rise in non-performing loans to interest rate volatility that affected the entire Argentine financial system in 2025, and argued that tax components such as VAT, turnover taxes, and stamp duties significantly increase the total financial cost of consumer credit, which he described as regressive and harmful to financial inclusion. Barbieri has described Argentina as having an "incredible opportunity" due to the potential for low inflation, and has called for labor and tax reforms to encourage formal employment and investment. He has stated that Ualá’s mission is to bring financial services to the 21st century, emphasizing that the company’s efficiency allows it to offer higher returns on deposits and lower-cost credit than traditional banks. Barbieri has also said that competition from other fintechs such as Nubank and Mercado Libre motivates him, and that he views the digitalization of payments as an inevitable trend that will benefit the region.
Transcript (20 segments)
✨ AI-enhanced transcript with speaker attribution
H
Host0:00
Credit cards today seem almost indispensable in our lives because of all the promotions, the ability to pay in 3 or 12 interest-free installments. So for any big purchase, I'm going to try to use a credit card. But if everyone has access—well, we have a huge unbanked population in Argentina. A very large number of people don't have formal employment, are minors, and could access certain payment methods but not a traditional account. And in this world, fintech companies are emerging—technology and finance firms looking for business niches and developing products for people that traditional banks don't serve today.
That's why a very intelligent Argentine—and so much so that he convinced the multimillionaire George Soros to invest in Argentina after many years, saying 'there's a very interesting niche here.' Let us present this talented Argentine: Pierpaolo Barbieri. Do we have talent or not?
P
Pierpaolo Barbieri1:16
Thanks for the invitation.
H
Host1:18
How is it that George Soros came to invest in developing products for the unbanked sector in Argentina?
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Pierpaolo Barbieri1:26
In Argentina we have a big problem with the lack of banking. We want to create a financial inclusion project to reach all those people who are frustrated with banks today and don't have access to the formal system. We had the support of Soros among other major foreign investors. We created all this technology in Argentina to solve a problem for Argentines. What we're talking about is a non-bank card called Ualá that lets you load money on it—you can load it physically too. You don't need a bank account to transfer money to a debit or credit card. You can go to a Pago Fácil, a Rapipago, even a kiosk, and load money onto a card that you can then swipe at any store.
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Host2:19
Let me see how it works. I, for example, am not formally employed—I work informally—and I want to have a card. How do I do it?
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Pierpaolo Barbieri2:28
All you have to do is go to the App Store or Play Store and download the Ualá app. In three minutes you sign up, completely online, no paperwork, and you don't pay absolutely anything—it's completely free. This is the first card in the country that is truly free. It gets delivered to your home with no opening fees, no maintenance fees, and no renewal fees. You can use it at any store in the country that accepts MasterCard. You can load it with a bank account by linking your CVU, or if you don't have access to that, the idea is to have the reach to load it at any Pago Fácil, and we're adding Rapipago and other cash payment methods so you can load it anywhere.
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Host3:11
Pierpaolo, one thing that's happening with these virtual wallet launches and these products is that it's easy to access the product but then hard to find a store that accepts it.
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Pierpaolo Barbieri3:28
That's exactly why—and we didn't want to build yet another wallet. We wanted to make a card, a completely free card that you can use anywhere in Argentina or the world that accepts MasterCard. And now with the new central bank regulations, even SMEs have free POS terminals in many cases, so we reach that entire network from day one. That's great because it gives access to all those people who never had the opportunity to pay with plastic and have the security of not walking around with cash. We will never charge you for anything—just download the app and sign up.
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Host4:01
And how do you make money then?
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Pierpaolo Barbieri4:04
We're using technology to have very efficient operations and survive only on what merchants pay, like any other card. And in the future, what we want to do is offer loans to all those people who currently go to signature-only loans that charge usurious rates. We want to use the data we have on how people consume in Argentina to lower rates and give individuals credit cards or personal loans at much lower rates than the competition.
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Host4:35
Sure, in a way, as that person keeps consuming, spending, and paying, it will show their financial capacity.
P
Pierpaolo Barbieri4:43
Exactly. What's a milestone about the app we developed—which is 100% Argentine—is that we do real-time transactionality. The moment you make a purchase, it appears in the app, and then we analyze that purchase and give you a global view of how you're spending so you understand your habits and can save better. You can also send money to friends instantly and securely via text message. And if someone steals your card, you can freeze it directly from the app and we'll send you a new one.
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Host5:14
Now, something I saw someone ask—and it can happen to people at home—I have to load this card with my own money first, right? Because how do you verify that I, being informal, will be able to...
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Pierpaolo Barbieri5:26
Right. For now Ualá is prepaid—it's like loading a phone, and you use what you've loaded, whether from your bank account or cash. Early next year we'll be launching credit, and if you have this card, you'll be able to qualify for Ualá Credit. We'll give you a personal loan that debits directly to the card, or a regular credit card with a line like any other in the country but with lower financing rates.
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Host6:00
But look, this isn't a credit card—it's a prepaid card, it won't give me financing, right? Like they asked at the beginning?
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Pierpaolo Barbieri6:08
Not right now, but at the beginning of next year we plan to launch that. We're going to use all the people who sign up between now and then to improve the product and see what else we want to create. That's why I say in the letter we launched with the product that we want to create a community where the users themselves tell us what they want. For example, in our private beta everyone told us they wanted to load the SUBE card, pay bills, and top up their phone directly. So in the coming weeks and months we'll be integrating all of that so you can pay your taxes, bills, invoices, load your SUBE or phone—all from the app.
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Host6:47
And the promotions—which are a big driver today of plastic usage, something that motivates you to use the card—are they also available for this card even though it's prepaid?
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Pierpaolo Barbieri6:59
We're trying to flip the idea. Instead of charging you renovation fees, super high rates, and then saying we have 10% at a business and killing you with hidden charges—it's incredible that in Argentina, where only 15% of the population has a credit card, everyone talks about airline miles when many people have never even taken a flight. Our idea is to give you the free plastic, no hidden charges, we don't charge the user anything—we try to bring them into the system. We're working on special benefits for Ualá users. Our goal is to bank and include people directly with a truly free card. Sign up right now from the Play Store like any other app, in 3 minutes, no paperwork. Minors under 18 can also have it—if you're between 14 and 18, we have a special protocol because we need legal approval from a parent or guardian, but you can still get it. It's a great way for parents who don't want to give cash to their kids—they can give them the card directly from the app, and if the kid loses it, you can also see what they spent it on.
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Host8:29
Well, thank you very much.