During the final week of November, the Central Bank (BC) promoted the online workshop Deep Dive Into Pix, put together by the departments of Competition and of Financial Market Structure (Decem) and of International Affairs (Derin) of the Central Bank. The encounter gathered representatives from 26 Central Banks and from financial governing bodies across Europe, North America, South America, and Africa. This event opened doors to the development of instant cross-border payments.
The Central Bank’s director of Financial Systems’ Organization and Resolutions, Renato Dias de Brito Gomes, highlighted that, even though there is much work ahead to be done, the connection of instant domestic payment systems is a possible path to the beginning of instant cross-border payment projects.
According to Gomes, the collaboration among countries, “opens doors to the development of instant cross-border payments. Connecting domestic instant payment systems certainly is a possible means to this end. Nevertheless, there is still much work to be done in order to reconcile regulations, technology, and operations in various payment systems.”
During the event, Gomes made it a point to reiterate the security of Pix. He explained that, “banking applications, as well as applications from other service providers are tested thoroughly.” Among Pix’s perks, aside from its quick nature, Gomes mentioned its low cost, specifying that transactions between individuals are completely free.
“The consumer utilizes Pix through their own bank’s applications, a platform which they already know and trust. In other words, Pix was already born integrated into both people’s and companies’ daily lives,” said Gomes.
The Central Bank’s director of Financial Systems’ Organization and Resolutions also emphasized that there are no specific hardware, software or banking application requirements. In order for the user to make a transaction, it is only necessary to have access to a cell phone or internet banking. Gomes additionally noted that Pix is part of an innovation plan created by the Central Bank, which compounds instant payments, Open Finance and the Digital Real.
Furthermore, during the event, which counted with the participation of the Department of Banking Operations and Payment Systems (Deban) and of the Department of Information Technology (Deinf), Renato Gomes called attention to the accessibility of the system. According to the director of Financial Systems’ Organization and Resolutions of the Central Bank, “from the very beginning, the Central Bank decided that Pix should be open, accessible, simple and secure, so it may efficiently address market shortcomings and complement the payment methods which already exist in the country.”