Central Bank of Chile launches consultation on payment card rule changes for offline open-loop payments in mass public transport

The Central Bank of Chile has issued for consultation proposed amendments to its payment card regulation to facilitate the use of open-loop payment cards in mass public transport systems regulated by the Ministry of Transport and Telecommunications. The changes target open-loop credit, debit and nominative prepaid cards and are set out as modifications to Chapter III.J.1 of the Compendium of Financial Regulations. The proposal responds to the operational need for offline processing in high-throughput transit environments, where fares may be aggregated and charged at the end of a payment cycle. To address integrity and fraud risks from offline transactions where funds may be insufficient at reconciliation, the draft introduces safeguards including an issuer exposure cap of 0.1 unidad de fomento (UF) for validated offline transactions without sufficient funds, a reconciliation-based preventive blocking mechanism that prevents further transit use until funds are replenished, and a restriction that only nominative open-loop cards regulated by the Central Bank may be used. The consultation runs until 11 July 2025. The Central Bank will publish submissions received within the deadline, reserving the right to edit or summarise them, along with any corresponding responses.