Argentina’s Congress removed a provision from President Javier Milei’s labour reform bill that would have allowed workers to receive salaries directly into digital wallets instead of traditional bank accounts.
The article was withdrawn during negotiations to secure broader political backing for the legislation, in a move widely viewed as a concession to the country’s banking sector.
“The exclusion of Article 35 from the labor reform eliminated the possibility for Argentinians to freely choose where to receive their salary,”
Said Lemon CFO Maximiliano Raimondi, adding:
“Governing involves negotiation, but it’s paradoxical that in a context where economic freedom is a central tenet, there has been a setback on a point that expanded a concrete freedom.”
Under current Argentine law, wages must be deposited into bank accounts, even as digital wallet adoption has accelerated in response to limited banking access and deep-rooted distrust of traditional institutions.
A 2022 Central Bank survey found that only 47% of Argentines held bank accounts, reflecting decades of financial instability including the 2001 “corralito” deposit freeze and persistent inflation that have driven citizens towards alternative financial tools.
Fintech platforms such as Mercado Pago, Modo, Ualá and Lemon have become widely used entry points into the formal financial system, with many users relying on them as primary accounts.
Banking associations argued that digital wallets lack equivalent prudential oversight and could introduce systemic risks, and following the announcement the Banco Provincia share price was unchanged at $XX.