Start your own digital banking app in Santiago and take on BancoEstado and Mercado Pago
By SendPay Business · · 3 min read
Santiago is one of the biggest money cities in Chile. In Chile, card and phone payments are normal, and new money apps are winning younger customers. Most of it flows through BancoEstado, Banco de Chile and Santander, plus apps like Mercado Pago and Tenpo. A brand built for Santiago, its neighbourhoods, communities and small businesses, can win people the national giants treat as just another account number.
How Santiago pays today
In Santiago, cards are everywhere and BancoEstado's CuentaRUT is one of the most widely held accounts in Chile.
A brand built for one community, such as newcomers, students or small businesses, can offer something more focused.
Who you'd be competing with in Santiago
The big banks, BancoEstado, Banco de Chile and Santander, are everywhere in Santiago. The apps, like Mercado Pago and Tenpo, won people over by being simpler. Your edge is being local: your language, your community, your city's name on the card.
What you can launch under your own brand
An everyday account app with balances and a branded card, a money transfer app, a payment-link product for invoices, a marketplace that pays its sellers, or a membership platform. Each is a template: your name, your colours, your domain, your fees.
How it works, in a few clicks
Pick the template closest to your idea, type your platform name and preview every page before you pay.
- Pick a template.
- Name it and choose your colours. The site changes as you type.
- Preview the finished platform, page by page.
- Verify with a selfie and pay your invoice.
- Go live on your own domain within 24 hours and invite your first users.
You set the fees, you keep them
Charge 1%, 2.9% or nothing: it's your call. On every peso your users move, your platform earns the fee you set.
Permissions: the honest part
The accounts, cards and payments behind your platform are powered by licensed partners. Depending on what your platform does and who it serves, you may also need your own registration, and serving customers in Chile can bring local rules from the Financial Market Commission (CMF). We tell you in writing which permissions apply to your platform before you pay, and introduce specialists who handle them. We are not licensed advisers and don't guarantee outcomes.
Build it
Create your own financial platform.
Pick a template, name it, brand it, preview every page before you pay. Your brand, your users, your fees.
Build my platform →Questions people ask
Can I really compete with BancoEstado in Santiago?
Not on size on day one. But you can beat any big bank on focus: a platform built for one city, community or kind of customer, with a better experience and fairer fees.
Can I call it a bank?
In most countries, including Chile, "bank" is a protected word you can only use with a banking licence. Call it an account, an app or a platform.
Is SendPay Business connected to BancoEstado or Mercado Pago?
No. We name them only to describe the market. SendPay Business is an independent technology company, not a bank.
Should I put Santiago in my app's name?
It can help if you only plan to serve Santiago, because people trust a local name. If you want to grow across Chile later, pick a name that still works outside the city. The free name generator gives you ideas and opens your favourite straight in the builder.
Payment app name generator →How much could a platform in Santiago earn?
It depends on how many people in Santiago use it, how much they move and the fee you set. Put your own numbers into the free calculator.
Platform earnings calculator →Is there a guide for the whole of Chile?
Yes, the Chile guide covers the national picture.
Chile guide →Is there a step-by-step plan I can follow?
Yes. The free launch checklist takes you from picking your people and naming your app to setting fees, going live and winning your first ten customers. Tick each step off as you go.
Digital bank app launch checklist →How do I start?
Pick a template, name it and preview every page before you pay. Your platform can be live on your own domain within 24 hours of confirmation.
Build my platform →Read next
This guide is general information, not legal or financial advice. SendPay Business is a technology company, not a bank, and does not take deposits; regulated services on the platforms are provided by licensed partners. PayPal, Patreon and Substack are named as reference points only and are not affiliated with SendPay Business.