Cubo
Cubo is a Central American fintech founded in 2020 that provides Bluetooth and standalone POS hardware, payment APIs, and merchant management software to over 10,000 SMEs and micro-merchants across El Salvador, Panama, and Guatemala, monetizing via per-transaction commissions and hardware sales.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2020
- HeadquartersSan Salvador, El Salvador
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Cubo does
Cubo Pago, S.A. de C.V. (operating as Cubo) is a Central American fintech founded in 2020 and headquartered in San Salvador, El Salvador. The company provides digital payment acceptance solutions targeted at SMEs and micro-merchants in El Salvador, Panama, and Guatemala, addressing a financial-inclusion gap left by traditional acquirers that impose monthly fees, minimum transaction volumes, and complex onboarding. Cubo's product ecosystem comprises Bluetooth and standalone POS hardware (Cubo Pos, Cubo Smart, and the printer-equipped Cubo Más), the Cubo Admin web/mobile dashboard for transaction monitoring and inventory management, the Cubo API for e-commerce Visa/Mastercard integration, and supplementary features including payment links, QR codes, recurring subscription billing, interest-free installments (cuotas sin intereses), and Bitcoin acceptance via the Lightning Network.
Cubo generates revenue primarily through percentage-based transaction commissions (5.57% per successful transaction in El Salvador, 3.95% plus per-transaction fees in Panama, volume-based in Guatemala), supplemented by one-time hardware sales (~$35 per Cubo Pos) and, in Panama only, mandatory subscription tiers. The company reports over 10,000 active merchants across its three markets and operates a product-led growth motion: merchants self-onboard via mobile-app download, complete 100% online registration, and purchase hardware directly through WhatsApp or the website without sales interaction. Cubo holds PCI-DSS compliance, Visa and Mastercard certifications, and is regulated by the Superintendencia del Sistema Financiero in El Salvador and Superintendencia de Bancos de Panamá.
The company has raised approximately $5 million across pre-seed (2020, $1.5M from Global Founders Capital and Xtraordinary Venture Partners), seed (2023, $3.5M led by IDB Lab with Amador Holdings, Latin Leap, Latitud, Seedstars, Simma Capital, and Soma Capital), and an undisclosed 2025 round from Innogen Capital. In November 2025, Cubo established an office at 55 Colmore Row in Birmingham, UK. Headcount is reported at 11-50 employees and revenue is not publicly disclosed.
Cubo firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Cubo
- Legal name
- CUBO PAGO, S.A. DE C.V.
- Website
- https://cubopago.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2020
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Cubo is a Central American fintech founded in 2020 that provides Bluetooth and standalone POS hardware, payment APIs, and merchant management software to over 10,000 SMEs and micro-merchants across El Salvador, Panama, and Guatemala, monetizing via per-transaction commissions and hardware sales.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Cubo industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Mobile Payment Processing
- akta.pro primary industry
- Card-Not-Present / eCommerce Acquirers (FSAMABAD)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Merchant-Integrated BNPL (Checkout POS Financing) (FSAGAIAA)
Keywords
Where Cubo is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- San Salvador
- HQ country
- El Salvador
- HQ region
- Latin America
Offices3 records
Markets served
Cubo business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Personnel
Revenue model
- Transaction Commission: Cubo charges a percentage-based commission on every successful card transaction processed through its platform. No monthly fees or penalties are charged. In El Salvador the commission is 5.57% (4.93% effective rate for registered taxpayers who receive a tax credit). In Panama the base commission is 3.95% plus a $0.15 per-transaction POS fee and $0.35 per link-of-payment transaction with 3DS. Guatemala uses a volume/giro-based commission structure. This is the primary revenue stream.
- POS Device Sales: Merchants purchase Cubo's hardware devices (Cubo Pos, Cubo Smart, Cubo Más) for a one-time price (e.g., $35 + shipping in El Salvador). The device is owned by the merchant with no monthly rental fees.
- Subscription Plans: In Panama, merchants must select a subscription plan that fits their business needs. Plans are required to access the service, with the commission structure varying by plan tier.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Transaction-only model with no monthly commitment |
| Subscription | Monthly | Subscription model required in Panama |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels5 records
Cubo product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Cubo provides mobile point-of-sale payment acceptance solutions for small and medium-sized merchants across Central America. Its offering combines proprietary Bluetooth and WiFi-enabled card reader hardware (Cubo Pos, Cubo Smart, Cubo Más) with a merchant management platform (Cubo Admin) and a developer-facing payment API, enabling SMEs to accept Visa, Mastercard, contactless, QR, payment-link, and Bitcoin transactions without monthly fees or minimum commitments.
Product overview
Cubo is a Central American fintech offering a multi-product payment acceptance ecosystem for merchants of any size across El Salvador, Panama, and Guatemala. The portfolio consists of hardware devices (Cubo Pos Bluetooth card reader, Cubo Smart standalone WiFi POS, Cubo Más portable printer-enabled device), the Cubo Admin platform for transaction management and inventory control, the Cubo API for e-commerce payment integration, and supplementary features including Link de Suscripción for recurring payments, Bitcoin Lightning Network acceptance, QR codes, payment links, interest-free installment options, and collaborator access controls. The ecosystem is unified through the Cubo Admin platform and mobile app, enabling merchants to accept Visa, Mastercard, Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Bitcoin from a single interface.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Cubo Pos: Bluetooth card reader for in-person payments supporting chip and contactless transactions
- Cubo Admin
- Cubo API
- Cubo Smart
- Cubo Más
- Link de Suscripción
Products and services
- Cubo Pos
Quantifiable outcome
- Over 10,000 merchants actively using the platform across three countries
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use Cubo
Customer profileNamed customers9 records
Segments1 record
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Cubo technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- Yes
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration31 records
Feature8 records
Cubo partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Four partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- VisacoreVisa has certified Cubo's payment platform. Cubo is authorized to accept Visa credit and debit cards. Visa logos appear on all product pages and marketing materials as a supported payment method.
- MastercardcoreMastercard has certified Cubo's payment platform. Cubo is authorized to accept Mastercard credit and debit cards. Mastercard logos appear on all product pages and marketing materials as a supported payment method.
- Superintendencia del Sistema Financiero (El Salvador)coreCubo's payment processor is regulated by the Superintendencia del Sistema Financiero (SSF) of El Salvador, the financial system regulator. This regulatory relationship ensures legal compliance for payment processing operations in El Salvador.
- Superintendencia de Bancos de PanamácoreCubo's payment processor is regulated by the Superintendencia de Bancos de Panamá, Panama's banking regulator. This ensures compliance with Panama's financial system regulations.
Scale indicators5 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Cubo competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Kushki: Latin American payment processor founded in Ecuador providing online, in-person, and recurring payment infrastructure across multiple Andean and Central American markets. Comparable as a regional, multi-country fintech with both gateway and acquiring capabilities.
- SumUp: Global mPOS provider selling low-cost card readers to micro-merchants with transparent per-transaction pricing. Mirrors Cubo's product-led, zero-monthly-fee model and is one of the most direct international analogues; relevant if SumUp expands deeper into Central America.
- Clip: Mexican mPOS company offering Bluetooth card readers and a merchant app targeted at SMEs and micro-merchants. Closely comparable to Cubo on product (mPOS + dashboard), target customer (informal SMBs), and business model (transaction-based pricing), though operating in Mexico rather than Central America.
- Payvalida: Central American digital payments company offering card acceptance, payment links, and e-commerce solutions across the same region Cubo serves. Directly comparable on geography, target customer (regional SMEs), and product scope.
Broad incumbents
- dLocal: LatAm-focused cross-border payments platform enabling global merchants to accept local payment methods across emerging markets. Comparable as a high-growth LatAm fintech infrastructure player, though focused on cross-border rather than in-country SME acquiring.
- Block (Square): Global mPOS pioneer and fintech platform offering card readers, merchant software, and banking. Closest global reference for Cubo's product-led, low-fee SME model; relevant primarily as a competitive and benchmark reference rather than a direct regional rival.
- PagSeguro: Brazilian payment processor offering mPOS devices, payment links, online checkout, and merchant credit. Comparable in product breadth and SME focus, but operating primarily in Brazil and at materially larger scale.
- Mercado Pago: Payments arm of MercadoLibre, dominant across most of LatAm with card acquiring, POS, QR, credit, and merchant services. Overlaps with Cubo's QR, POS, and online payment acceptance but at vastly greater scale and as part of a broader commerce ecosystem.
- Stone Co. Brazilian acquiring and banking platform serving SMBs with POS devices, payment processing, and merchant credit. Highly comparable on SMB acquiring focus and multi-product strategy, though concentrated in Brazil.
Regional players
- Wompi: Colombian payment gateway operated by Bancolombia that processes cards, PSE, and Nequi payments. Comparable as a bank-backed digital acquiring platform serving SMEs in Latin America, though anchored in Colombia rather than Central America.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks7 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Cubo social profiles
Digital presenceCubo compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance3 records
Cubo financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Cubo leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Cubo funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds3 records
Investors10 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Cubo M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Cubo
What does Cubo do?
Cubo provides mobile point-of-sale payment acceptance solutions for small and medium-sized merchants across Central America. Its offering combines proprietary Bluetooth and WiFi-enabled card reader hardware (Cubo Pos, Cubo Smart, Cubo Más) with a merchant management platform (Cubo Admin) and a developer-facing payment API, enabling SMEs to accept Visa, Mastercard, contactless, QR, payment-link, and Bitcoin transactions without monthly fees or minimum commitments.
Is Cubo a public or private company?
Cubo is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was Cubo founded?
Cubo was founded in 2020. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Cubo based?
Cubo is headquartered in San Salvador, El Salvador, in the Latin America region.
How does Cubo make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Transaction Commission is the primary driver. The others are POS Device Sales and subscription Plans.
Who are Cubo's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Kushki, SumUp, Clip and Payvalida. Broad incumbents are dLocal, Block (Square), PagSeguro, Mercado Pago and Stone Co.. Wompi is listed as a regional player.
Does Cubo have an API?
Yes. The Cubo API enables e-commerce platforms to accept Visa and Mastercard payments online. It offers easy integration with clear documentation, advanced security with PCI-DSS compliance, sandbox environment for testing, and allows connection of e-commerce sites, apps, or existing systems. The platform provides secure API credentials generated through Cubo Admin and supports transaction management through the Cubo Admin dashboard. Developer documentation is at developers.cubopago.com.
What industry is Cubo in?
Cubo's product category is Mobile Payment Processing. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSAMABAD, Card-Not-Present / eCommerce Acquirers, with a secondary code of FSAGAIAA, Merchant-Integrated BNPL (Checkout POS Financing).