Choosing the right LatAm payment gateway

Expanding your business into Latin America can be a game-changer, but the region’s payment landscape requires a highly strategic approach. With 78% of consumers preferring local payment methods and a significant portion of the adult population remaining unbanked, a generic global payment processor just doesn’t work.

Choosing the right payment gateway can make or break your e-commerce success in LatAm, and finding a solution that bridges the gap between international commerce and local consumer habits is key.

To help you choose the right partner for your business, this guide compares three leading payment gateways operating in Latin America: PayRetailers, Mercado Pago, and Nuvei Connect.

Key takeaways

Why your gateway choice matters

Entering Latin America means undertaking a highly fragmented financial infrastructure, complex regulatory environments, and fraud attempt rates that are often much higher than the global average.

Next, we dive into how these three major providers stack up across essential features like local payment support, multi-currency handling, compliance, and fraud prevention.

1. PayRetailers: The all-in-one cross-border solution

PayRetailers is a regulated cross-border payment platform specifically built for merchants handling substantial transaction volumes across Latin America. It eliminates the logistical headache of establishing separate local entities by offering direct local acquiring through a single API.

Local payment method integration

PayRetailers supports more than 300 local payment methods. This extensive coverage is crucial because over 70% of online payments in LatAm rely on alternative methods rather than international credit cards. You can easily offer instant bank transfers like Brazil’s Pix and Colombia’s PSE, as well as cash-voucher systems like Mexico’s OXXO. The platform features smart routing capabilities that optimize transactions by card type, BIN, or region, drastically reducing false declines and maximizing your payments.

Multi-currency support

Doing business across borders often means dealing with excessive conversion fees. PayRetailers provides multi-currency processing that allows you to process and settle payments in 24 local currencies. This removes the heavy investment in multiple payment integrations and shields your business from the hefty 8–12% currency conversion fees often charged by generic international gateways.

Regulatory compliance

Navigating local tax laws and central bank regulations is a major hurdle. PayRetailers simplifies regulatory compliance with built-in tools and dedicated, on-the-ground teams in key locations like Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, and Mexico. You gain the ability to operate in full compliance across the entire region with a single contract and a single API, bypassing the need to create local legal entities.

Fraud prevention

Fraud patterns in Latin America differ significantly from those in North America or Europe. PayRetailers utilizes advanced risk scoring designed specifically for the LatAm market. With real-time tracking via comprehensive dashboards and instant webhook alerts for suspicious activity, you can protect your revenue and maintain lower fraud rates without adding friction to the checkout experience.

2. Mercado Pago: The digital wallet ecosystem

Mercado Pago holds a substantial presence in Latin America with an 18.2% market share. Originally built to power the MercadoLibre marketplace, it has evolved into a comprehensive digital wallet and financial ecosystem.

Local payment method integration

Mercado Pago consolidates over 100 local payment options across more than 15 countries. Through its integration, you can accept credit and debit cards, bank transfers, and cash payments tailored to specific markets—such as Boleto in Brazil or RedCompra in Chile. It offers versatile integration options, including hosted checkout pages and modular UI components.

Multi-currency support

For cross-border merchants, Mercado Pago offers a solution to charge customers in their local currencies while withdrawing funds in USD to an external bank account. It utilizes an Exchange Rate API to manage conversions during settlement. However, configuring cross-border accounts requires specific documentation and close coordination with their regional teams.

Regulatory compliance

Mercado Pago adheres to strict PCI DSS standards and complies with local data protection laws across its operational footprint. In countries like Argentina, it operates as a payment service provider, and it strictly audits developer applications to ensure sensitive transaction details remain secure.

Fraud prevention

To minimize chargebacks, Mercado Pago employs a real-time anti-fraud system. All integrations use tokenization and follow OWASP standards. While it provides strong payment success rates, merchants should note that transaction fees typically range from 2% to 4%, and some businesses report slower account approval processes and strict API rate limits during peak traffic.

3. Nuvei Connect: The global enterprise player

Nuvei Connect is a robust payment solution built for large enterprises. It covers 10 countries within Latin America while connecting businesses to a large global acquiring network.

Local payment method integration

Nuvei supports over 500 local and alternative payment methods globally. In LatAm, this translates to seamless access to regional options like Pix, OXXO Pay, and Khipu. The platform manages the entire transaction lifecycle—from pay-ins and pay-outs to recurring billing and chargeback management—allowing international businesses to process payments locally.

Multi-currency support

Nuvei’s strong suit is its multi-currency capabilities. It supports nearly 150 fiat currencies and over 40 cryptocurrencies. Merchants can accept payments in local currencies like BRL, COP, and MXN, while choosing settlement in major international currencies like USD or EUR. This flexibility is beneficial for reducing currency exposure for large-scale operations.

Regulatory compliance

By leveraging local acquiring networks, Nuvei helps merchants achieve up to 16% higher acceptance rates compared to purely cross-border acquirers. It manages PCI DSS compliance and implements automated controls for Know Your Customer (KYC) and Strong Customer Authentication (SCA) requirements.

Fraud prevention

Nuvei integrates 3D Secure technology for credit cards and local bank transfers. For cash-heavy markets, it utilizes real-time verification and instant payment notifications to eliminate manual delays. Additional security options include biometric multi-factor authentication (Touch ID, Face ID), providing granular control over your fraud prevention strategies. However, this high level of customization demands more technical development resources to implement effectively.

How to choose your gateway

Selecting the right provider depends entirely on your specific business model, transaction volume, and technical capabilities.

Your partner in LatAm growth

Thriving in Latin America means providing a seamless, localized checkout experience while navigating complex regulatory frameworks behind the scenes. Integrating the right payment gateway directly translates to an increase in payment conversion rates and higher merchant satisfaction scores.

Optimize your payments with a platform built specifically for the nuances of the Latin American market. From flawless integration of local methods like Pix and OXXO to robust fraud prevention and instant settlements, you need a partner that understands the terrain.