Brief
A 600% increase in the minimum fee charged on mobile payments is raising transaction costs for Venezuela’s most vulnerable consumers. Specialists cited in the report say the adjustment is intended to generate revenue for banks whose finances are constrained by the legal reserve requirement. The change transfers part of that pressure to customers, reducing the purchasing power of those least able to absorb higher payment charges.
The size of the fee increase points to banking-sector strain under current reserve rules and shows that the cost is being transferred to customers. Higher payment charges weaken already-limited household purchasing power and expose the unresolved tension between bank viability and affordable financial access.
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Industry · El Nacional - Economía
Aug 25, 2026
Watch the next mobile-payment fee schedule and any change to the legal reserve requirement. Those decisions will show whether the 600% increase persists or whether authorities relieve banking pressure through reserve policy.