The possibility of connecting Pix to instant payment systems in other countries opens a new avenue for transformation in the Brazilian market. The Central Bank has begun evaluating bilateral connection models as well as participation in multilateral structures, a move that could expand the system's reach beyond domestic transactions.
The change would impact not only consumers traveling internationally, but primarily the infrastructure used by companies, banks, and other participants to process payments between countries.
Today, Brazilians can already pay via Pix at some establishments abroad through private solutions that convert the amount and settle the payment in the local currency. However, an integration between national systems could create a broader interoperability framework.
According to José Tadeu Bijos, CEO and president of Multipagamentos, the main effect would be behind the scenes of the transaction.
“Internationalizing Pix doesn’t just mean allowing someone to pay in reais outside of Brazil. It means coordinating currencies, exchange rates, settlement, rules, and different participants within an experience that needs to remain simple for the user. It’s an infrastructure change, not just a payment method change,” he states.
The connection between instant payment platforms can also create new alternatives for transactions currently concentrated in international private networks. For businesses, however, the expansion of routes increases the need to monitor costs, settlement times, and reconciliation between different systems.
In addition to processing the purchase, international transactions need to consider currency conversion, identification of the amount actually received, and handling situations such as cancellations, returns, and disputes.
“When new routes for money to circulate emerge, the need for intelligence to decide and monitor how each transaction will be processed grows. The competition tends to shift from just payment methods to also encompassing the efficiency of the infrastructure that connects these operations,” says Bijos.
