Credibanco and Koibanx Partner to Boost Interoperability in Colombia

In a landscape where regulatory framework is gradually pushing financial entities to communicate more and users demand transactions with multiple assets, Web3 technology and the opportunities blockchain provides for digital, decentralized, and programmable transactions, it becomes a natural facilitator of interoperability.

The Alliance

Proof of this is the alliance announced by Credibanco and Koibanx at KoiSummit 2023. This event brought together various industry leaders to discuss the opportunities for integrating Web3 into Colombia’s and Latin America’s financial system. The companies confirmed that their agreement is promoting payment interoperability in Colombia by using blockchain technology to transform Credibanco’s acquiring network into a receiver of assets like loyalty points, gift cards, or vouchers—formats of value for users.

Credibanco’s president, Ricardo Zambrano, explained that there are several assets that are part of a closed ecosystem and also need interoperability. “Blockchain gives us the possibility to tokenize them and carry out transactions with them at the point of sale. Thanks to this, assets that previously moved in closed circles, like loyalty points, can now enjoy interoperability, opening them up to a wider variety of options. In this case, loyalty points that users have not been able to spend or redeem are tokenized, allowing them to be spent at any access point on the Credibanco network. Each entity applies this technology according to the type of customers it has and their needs.”

The collaboration between Credibanco and Koibanx is “a big step towards interoperability and Open Finance in Colombia,” claimed Leo Elduayen. “Although initially simpler assets like loyalty points, gift cards, or vouchers are contemplated, the technological basis is being laid for this same network to be prepared to handle more complex assets in the future,” he added.

Technological Landscape in the Ecosystem

At the end of the event, the CEO and co-founder of Koibanx highlighted the relevance of technology as an essential facilitator and how he sees the progress of this unstoppable growth route of decentralized finances.

“Technology allows to represent real-world assets—tangible or intangible—in their digital version on the blockchain, that is, to tokenize them. Whether it’s a coffee harvest, soybeans, square meters of real estate, or Colombian pesos, the value will depend on who issues it. If it is a financial institution authorized to keep custody, which legally owns the asset, along with blockchain technology that meets all the requirements to be used as a transactional record, then we are talking about the use of Web3 under compliance that allows to dynamicize and interoperate different types of assets in different transactions,” concluded Leo Elduayen.

In its 2023 edition, KoiSummit served as an essential dialogue forum for the country, providing a space to understand and embrace the technological revolution transforming the financial industry. International experts and local leaders confirmed the need to promote the integration of advanced technologies in the Colombian financial sector, to raise awareness about the importance of tokenization and payment interoperability, and to encourage regional collaboration in adopting avant-garde practices, to continue positioning Colombia as an innovation hub in Latin America.