- Bizum Pay will allow you to pay in physical stores with your mobile phone using NFC, just like with other digital wallets.
- The rollout begins on May 18 and will be progressive depending on each bank and business.
- Payments will be instant account-to-account transfers, with immediate collection for the merchant.
- Bizum is positioning itself as a European alternative to Visa and Mastercard at the physical point of sale.
Bizum is preparing one of its biggest leaps since its launch In Spain: going from being an app for sending money to friends or paying online to becoming a common payment method in supermarkets, bars, local shops, and large chains. This new step is materialized with Bizum Pay, the feature that will allow you to pay for in-person purchases by simply holding your phone near the card reader, without needing a physical card.
Beginning May 18thThe system will begin to be activated in businesses throughout Spain, although the rollout will be gradual and will depend on the bank and the establishment. The idea is that the process will be exactly the same as with Apple Pay or Google Pay: take out your phone, hold it near the terminal, and wait a few seconds for confirmation, but with one key difference behind the scenes: the money will travel as an instant account-to-account transfer.
How Bizum Pay will work in physical stores
In-store payments with Bizum Pay will be supported by the NFC technologyThe same system used for current contactless payments. For the user, the process will be very familiar: upon arriving at the checkout, they will simply unlock their mobile phone, bring it close to the payment terminal, and authorize the transaction with their fingerprint, facial recognition, or another authentication system configured on their phone.
This new service can be used in two main ways: from the bank appwhich will integrate the Bizum Pay option within its own payment menu, or from a new independent digital wallet, also called Bizum Pay, available for Android phones and iOS. In both cases, the logic is the same: Bizum is selected as the payment method and the operation is completed by bringing the device close to the card reader.
Unlike a physical card or a virtual card stored in Apple Pay or Google Wallet, the money doesn't travel through traditional networks. Visa or MastercardInstead, an instant transfer is executed between the customer's bank account and the merchant's account. This reduces reliance on large international schemes and opens the door to different commission structures and settlement times.
For businesses, the integration will be relatively simple: POS terminals that already operate with contactless payments will not need a hardware change, but rather a software update by providers (such as Redsys or Cecabank) and by the banks themselves. In practice, the same card reader that currently accepts cards will be able to accept Bizum Pay with an update and activation of the service in the merchant's contract.
Another important new feature is that Bizum Pay includes the option to add a backup bank cardIf at any time an operation cannot be completed by Problems paying with your mobile phoneThe system could automatically switch to card payment, without the user having to repeat the gesture or take their wallet out of their pocket.
Launch schedule and banks joining first
The date marked in red is the May 18thThe activation of in-person payments with Bizum will begin on [date]. However, this does not mean that all users will be able to pay in any store from that moment on. As with other banking innovations, the rollout will be gradual and will vary depending on the bank and the store.
In the first wave, entities such as CaixaBank, Banco Sabadell and Bankinter They will be among the first to offer Bizum Pay to their customers for in-store purchases. Others, like Santander, have postponed their integration until the autumn months, and the remaining participating banks will gradually join throughout the year.
The goal being considered in the sector is that, by the end of 2026, the vast majority of Bizum users Users can use their mobile phones to pay in physical stores with this system. Today, the platform already has around 30,6 million registered users in Spain, 39 participating banks, and more than 3,4 million daily transactions—figures that provide a solid foundation for this leap into the point of sale.
The rollout in stores will also not be simultaneous. Each establishment will need to have its payment services contract up to date and a compatible POS terminal. Large chains such as supermarkets and distribution stores They are already negotiating the commission terms, and the case of Mercadona, which has sat down to discuss rates even before the official launch, illustrates the importance that the commercial agreement will have in the expansion of the system.
Meanwhile, other financial groups, such as the Caja Rural GroupThey have been obtaining certifications to operate with Bizum Pay in the physical environment, so the map of entities that adopt the service will expand as testing and technical developments progress.
What changes for users: from Bizum between friends to everyday payments
Until now, Bizum had established itself as a tool for send money between individuals And, more recently, it can be used to pay in online stores without having to enter card details. With its arrival in physical stores, the service aims to become a regular part of everyday payments for groceries, set meals, pharmacy items, or the local bakery.
From the user's point of view, the main novelty is being able to pay for those purchases. without carrying the card And without changing your environment: everything is managed from the bank's app or from the Bizum Pay wallet itself. The mobile phone thus becomes the central device for sending money, paying online, and collecting payments in person, all in a single workflow.
The user experience will be very similar to that already offered by digital wallets from major manufacturers. Authentication via biometrics (fingerprint or facial recognition) It will replace the PIN or SMS code in most cases, allowing the payment process to be reduced to unlocking the mobile phone and bringing it close to the terminal in a matter of seconds.
It is worth remembering that the end user You will not pay any additional fees. Using Bizum Pay in a physical store incurs no fees, just as you don't pay fees for sending a Bizum payment to someone else or paying online. For the customer, the cost of a purchase will be the same as if they had used their usual card, and the charge will appear on the statement of their linked bank account or card, depending on their settings.
The big question is whether those who are already comfortable paying with contactless cards, Apple Pay or Google Pay They will feel the need to change their habits. The technology is very similar, and without clear incentives—such as discounts, cashback, or specific promotions—many users may perceive Bizum Pay as just another system among those already available.
What does Bizum Pay offer to businesses and what will the fees be?
For businesses, the arrival of Bizum Pay has several relevant implications. The first is the payment almost immediately of sales. Because these are instant account-to-account transfers, the money enters the merchant's account in a matter of seconds, instead of waiting the 24-48 hours that some card settlements can take.
This speed can make all the difference for small businesses, self-employed workers and sectors with high turnoverFor example, in the hospitality industry, where daily cash flow is key, seeing the payment for each ticket the moment it's received helps improve liquidity and expense planning, without having to rely so heavily on the closing and payment cycles of traditional payment networks.
The second point is the cost. Bizum Pay will not be free for businesses; banks will set a fee. commission per transactionJust like with credit cards. Market trends suggest hybrid models with a fixed fee—ranging from approximately €0,10 to €0,40 per transaction—and a variable fee—between 0,10% and 0,60% of the amount—depending on the bank, the type of business, and the volume of transactions.
Currently, the average commission for card payments is around 0,37%With notable differences depending on the sector (peaks near 0,9% in some hospitality segments and lows around 0,2% in large stores and supermarkets). In this context, Bizum Pay aims to be competitive, especially above certain transaction amounts, where it can generate cumulative savings compared to traditional payment methods.
Spanish banks also have a significant role to play here: with Bizum Pay, they will be able to monetize directly for the first time A service that, for years, has only generated development and maintenance costs. By eliminating international intermediaries, banks capture a larger share of the total commission charged to the merchant, which explains the interest in promoting this new method at the physical point of sale.
Bizum as a European alternative to Visa and Mastercard
The expansion of Bizum Pay in Spanish stores is not just a local phenomenon. Europe has been looking for a similar platform for some time. own alternative to the large US-based payment schemes, and previous projects that attempted to build from scratch failed due to a lack of critical mass and real use.
In this scenario, Bizum starts with a base that other attempts did not have: more than 30 million active users In Spain, 111.000 online businesses have joined the platform, and it is strongly integrated into the daily operations of banks. Building on this foundation, the platform is negotiating with similar solutions in countries such as Italy, Portugal, and several Nordic states to create a European payments system that could reach more than 130 million citizens.
The model that is defined in Spain for the in-person payments with Bizum —regarding fees, settlement times, and the relationship between banks and merchants— will serve as a template for this future pan-European project. The idea is to maintain national brands recognizable to users, but connected through a common architecture that allows operation on a continental scale.
European institutions, including the European Central Bank, have been warning for years about the high concentration This exists in the card market, where Visa and Mastercard control a large portion of transactions. In several eurozone countries, virtually all in-store payments depend on these international networks, which is considered a vulnerability from a financial sovereignty perspective.
If Bizum Pay manages to establish itself as a viable alternative in Spain and coordinates effectively with other European platforms, it could become a relevant player within the continent's payments ecosystemreducing dependence on external infrastructure and offering greater control to banks and European regulators.
Inertia, incentives, and adoption challenges
Beyond the technology, one of Bizum Pay's main challenges will be convince the user that it's worth changing how you pay. Those who already have their card set up on their mobile phone or regularly use Apple Pay or Google Pay don't perceive significant friction in their daily lives, which makes it difficult for them to immediately adopt a new method that, in practice, feels very similar.
The experience of e-commerce offers some clues. When Bizum was integrated into many online stores and allowed payment using only a mobile number, without filling out forms with card details, adoption grew rapidly reaching rates of between 20% and 30% of payments on some websites. However, it has not yet become the dominant method, indicating that eliminating friction helps, but is not always enough to displace cards.
In the physical environment, where contactless payment is widespread, the key may lie in the economic incentivesBanks and businesses are considering formulas such as cashbacks, specific discounts, or points programs linked to Bizum payments, with the aim of giving users a clear reason to choose this option over existing alternatives.
The ability of large distributors—supermarkets, restaurant chains, service stations—to actively promote The service at the checkout, through campaigns, signage, or benefits for those who use it. If these players commit decisively to Bizum Pay, adoption could accelerate significantly in a relatively short time.
In parallel, tax regulations and tax obligations they don't change for the user who pays for their regular purchases with Bizum. The changes announced by the Tax Agency in recent years focus on professional or business transactions, not on everyday payments by ordinary citizens, so extending Bizum to physical stores does not imply new direct charges simply for using this payment method.
The arrival of Bizum Pay in physical stores definitively opens a new phase in the evolution of payments in Spain: banks seek to monetize a tool that until now was only a cost, businesses gain in immediacy and potentially in commissions, and users will find a Another alternative for paying with your mobile phoneIt's so similar to what they already know that, for it to really take off, it will need more than just technology: banks and stores will need to offer tangible reasons to give it a chance.
