How the belo Mastercard works for those living in Colombia

Many apps promise to work "all over the world," but the actual conditions depend on the country where the card is issued. Here we tell you which belo cards are available in Colombia (and which one is not), and what to check before choosing any international prepaid card.

Download the belo app and check which cards are available according to your account and current conditions.

Prepaid Mastercard in Colombia and the fine print

Anyone living in Colombia looking for a prepaid Mastercard in Colombia to pay in dollars, make international purchases, or manage travel expenses usually runs into the same problem: many options promise to work "all over the world," but the actual conditions depend on the country where the card is issued.

That difference, which seems minor when downloading an app, ends up defining how much each transaction costs and in which currency the expense is settled.

A specific case is the belo Mastercard. belo operates as a digital wallet in several countries in the region, and its Mastercard is among the most visible products on the platform.

There is one fact that should be clear from the beginning: the belo Mastercard is only available for Argentinian users.

This means that, for the moment, a resident of Colombia cannot request or receive it, in either physical or virtual format.

Why Argentina's conditions do not apply to the Colombian peso

Understanding how the belo Mastercard works in Argentina helps explain why it makes no sense to apply the same logic from Colombia. 

The card is designed for daily use in Argentine pesos, and when used for transactions in foreign currency, expenses are automatically converted to Argentine pesos according to the official selling exchange rate of Banco Nación on the day the charge is recorded, plus any applicable additional costs and taxes.

This conversion scheme responds to specific Argentine regulations.

If someone in Colombia read those conditions and assumed they applied to the Colombian peso, they would be making a costly mistake: the conversion does not involve COP at any stage of the process, because the card settles in ARS. 

Each intermediate conversion step adds a spread that has no relation to the exchange rate when paying in foreign currency that a Colombian user would expect to see.

For payments in foreign currency from Argentina, at belo we offer the LUX virtual Visa card, a product geared towards travel, international subscriptions, and purchases in dollars.

In Colombia, belo offers its own international virtual card, which operates in dollars for purchases where Visa is accepted: useful for the same type of international expenses, though not equivalent to the Argentine Mastercard. 

The logic remains: the Mastercard covers day-to-day expenses in Argentine pesos, and the virtual cards in dollars (LUX in Argentina, the international card in Colombia) cover foreign currency expenses.

What belo offers as a digital wallet card in Colombia

Although the Mastercard is not enabled for Colombia, belo operates as a digital wallet in the country and offers its own international virtual card in dollars, allowing you to use the app for transfers, collections, international payments, and fund movements.

This is useful for freelancers receiving payments from abroad or for those who need to move money between countries without relying on the traditional banking system.

The difference between having access to the wallet and having access specifically to the Mastercard is key.

Many people look for a Mastercard Colombia app hoping to find that specific product, but the belo Mastercard remains exclusive to Argentina.

What is available in Colombia is belo's own international virtual card, designed for payments in dollars, along with the wallet's infrastructure to manage digital currencies and make international transfers from the app.

For those who specifically need a prepaid card in dollars Colombia that allows paying at merchants or withdrawing from ATMs, the search currently points to other local or regional issuers.

Before choosing any option, there are technical criteria that are worth checking so as not to assume that all prepaid cards work the same way for international payments.

What to check before choosing an international prepaid card

The applied exchange rate is the factor that most impacts the actual cost of an international transaction, and it varies greatly between issuers.

Some cards apply the Mastercard exchange rate on the day of processing, which is usually competitive, while others add a spread of between 2% and 5% on top of that value.

Asking exactly which rate is used, and whether the charge is reflected at the time of payment or at closing, prevents surprises on your statement.

DCC (Dynamic Currency Conversion) is another point that many users are unaware of until they have already lost money.

When a merchant in Europe or the United States offers to charge "in your currency" instead of the local currency, they are applying their own exchange rate, which is almost always worse. 

The recommendation is to always decline DCC and let the charge be processed in the merchant's currency, so that the conversion is made by the card issuer with its standard rate.

Key points to verify before traveling or making a large international purchase

• Whether the card has a geographic block that requires prior activation for certain countries, because some issuers require this as a security measure and forgetting it could leave your payment declined at the most inconvenient moment.

• Whether it supports 3D Secure, which is the authentication system that many European merchants require to complete online purchases and without which the transaction simply will not go through.

• What the withdrawal limits at foreign ATMs are, because some prepaid cards allow withdrawals but with fixed fees that make small amounts very expensive in proportion.

When evaluating options, comparing the actual result of a specific scenario is more useful than reading fee schedules.

Simulate a 100-dollar purchase at an online store, check how many Colombian pesos are debited, and compare that number with the reference exchange rate of the Banco de la República for that day.

The difference between both values is the effective cost you are paying to use that digital wallet card, and that number, not the name of the network or the design of the app, is what defines whether it is convenient.

Download the belo app and check which cards and conditions apply to your account.

Frequently asked questions about how the belo Mastercard works for those living in Colombia

Can a resident in Colombia apply for the belo Mastercard?

No. The belo Mastercard is only available for Argentinian users.

A resident of Colombia can access the belo digital wallet for transfers and collections, and can also request belo's international virtual card (different from the Mastercard) for payments in dollars.

What is DCC and why is it always better to decline it?

DCC (Dynamic Currency Conversion) is an option offered by some merchants abroad to charge directly in the buyer's currency.

The exchange rate they apply is almost always worse than that of the card issuer, so it is best to decline it and let the charge be processed in the merchant's local currency.

How do I know how much a prepaid card actually costs me for international payments?

The most direct way is to simulate a specific purchase, such as 100 dollars at an online store, and compare the amount debited in Colombian pesos with the reference exchange rate of the Banco de la República on the same day.

The difference between those two values represents the actual effective cost of the card.

What is the difference between the Mastercard and the belo LUX card?

The belo Mastercard is designed for everyday use in Argentine pesos, while the LUX virtual Visa card is geared toward travel, international subscriptions, and purchases in dollars.

The Mastercard remains exclusive to Argentina, but in Colombia belo offers its own international virtual card for dollar expenses.

What is 3D Secure and why does it matter when choosing a prepaid card?

3D Secure is an additional authentication system that many European merchants require to complete online purchases.

If a prepaid card does not support it, the transaction may be declined even if there is a sufficient balance, making it unreliable for international purchases.