Profeco eliminates charges for the use of cashless bracelets at festivals and other mass events

Mass festivals and concerts are back in the crosshairs of the Federal Consumer Protection Agency (Profeco) . This time, the agency has eliminated fees and commissions related to the use of cashless bracelets, a mandatory payment system for consuming food and drinks within shows that replaces other means of payment. During Monday's morning conference, the head of the Attorney General's Office, Iván Escalante, assured that Ocesa, the main promoter of live shows in Mexico, agreed to eliminate all commissions related to the use, pre-loading or refund of money charged to the bracelets.

The logic behind the cashless system is to avoid the use of other means of payment such as cash and bank cards between workers offering products at festivals and the public. Instead, large events operated by Ocesa such as the Mexico City Grand Prix, or the Vive Latino and Corona Capital festivals , use a bracelet with a chip that contains the previously loaded balance. Without a bracelet with a balance, it is impossible to buy food, drinks or any merchandise within a concert or festival.

The imposition of cashless bracelets as the only means of payment has allowed organizers to collect commissions related to it, an irregularity pointed out by Profeco for violating the right to consume. At the 2024 Mexico City Grand Prix , the organizers offered a pre-load option to add credit to the bracelets before the event. In exchange, interested parties received a QR code with the amount purchased to redeem during the three days of the Grand Prix. The cost for using the pre-load system and creating a user to enter was 80 pesos, in addition to an amount of 30 pesos for each successive pre-load for the concept of “platform use fee”. At other massive festivals organized by Ocesa, such as Corona Capital , Tecate Emblema and Flow Fest, the cost for the refund of the balance paid to the bracelet and not used during the event ranged between 20 and 30 pesos.

The head of Profeco specified that although cashless- related charges are prohibited, the recharge bracelet system will continue to be used at these events: “What was clarified with the company (Ocesa) is that the devices will no longer be sold because they were sold at some events; there will no longer be a charge for pre-loading, nor will there be a charge for returning the money that remains accumulated in this system,” he explained through his X account .