I changed the original title because it makes Pix sound way more revolutionary than it really is. It changes nothing about how money works, but it is an efficient and reliable payment method that...
I changed the original title because it makes Pix sound way more revolutionary than it really is. It changes nothing about how money works, but it is an efficient and reliable payment method that is free for all Brazilians to use.
EDIT: AFAIK there is no Pix app and if there is one you don't have to use it. Pix is embedded in every banking app. You use it through your own banking app.
Kind of sounds like Interact in Canada. Non-profit started by banks. Every bank uses it. It works so well and is generally free to use with most banks. Sounds similar unless I am misunderstanding Pix.
Kind of sounds like Interact in Canada. Non-profit started by banks. Every bank uses it. It works so well and is generally free to use with most banks. Sounds similar unless I am misunderstanding Pix.
It would be interesting to read more about how Pix works in Brazil just for its own sake, but "some other country's government is able to do it" is only weak evidence that the US should consider...
It would be interesting to read more about how Pix works in Brazil just for its own sake, but "some other country's government is able to do it" is only weak evidence that the US should consider doing the same. Currently, the US federal government has some pretty severe problems.
Sure. It is just a simple system that works well. You have a key which can be your CPF (kind of a citizens' number), your phone number, or your email. You can also have that in the form of a QR...
Sure. It is just a simple system that works well. You have a key which can be your CPF (kind of a citizens' number), your phone number, or your email. You can also have that in the form of a QR code. You give that to people, and they input it on their banking app. They can then send you money instantly. It shows your full name before confirming the transaction. So it is a transfer method and a payment method that is universal and works very well. You do need a bank account, but every Brazilian can have one for free. Even homeless. They can get everything they need from an ATM. If you write your key on a piece of paper or print the QR code, you can take payment/transfers without having a smartphone at all, which is great for those who cannot afford one.
Yes, that is an issue. It seems like it is the Central Bank who's policing. There are transfer limits, specially at night, which is when most crimes occur. I remember not being able to make a...
Yes, that is an issue. It seems like it is the Central Bank who's policing. There are transfer limits, specially at night, which is when most crimes occur. I remember not being able to make a large purchase at 2 am or something. Scams do happen.
EDIT: most crimes occur at night because I am talking mostly about kidnappings. Someone forcing you to make transfers at gunpoint. Regular non-violent scams are a problem as well, but the lower limits at nigth are a response to violent crime. These transfer limits aready existed before Pix, so it's not like this is a new variety of crime caused by Pix. The criminals merely used other forms of transaction before.
If your concern is that the federal government can't be trusted to undermine Visa/Mastercard via mandating a universal bank transfer system, better than the horrifically slow ACH, there are bigger...
If your concern is that the federal government can't be trusted to undermine Visa/Mastercard via mandating a universal bank transfer system, better than the horrifically slow ACH, there are bigger problems at play.
It's futile anyway. We can't even get sane tax filing because of Turbotax. You think Visa/Mastercard/Stripe/Paypal/etc are gonna give up their cash cow without a fight?
I'm not aware of any technical reasons the US couldn't make an equivalent. Private banks already operate Zelle in the US which is worse and less efficient. The Fed and Treasury issuing a digital...
I'm not aware of any technical reasons the US couldn't make an equivalent. Private banks already operate Zelle in the US which is worse and less efficient. The Fed and Treasury issuing a digital currency is well-trodden ground that'd have significant efficiency benefits!
Every cent that's shaved off transaction costs is arguably a good thing if you want to encourage transactions. It's good to make it easier to share and transfer money however people want.
Though as long as MasterCard and Visa dominate, I'll keep using my cashback credit cards.
During the Fintech disruption, Thai banks were afraid of disruption from the Fintech startups, with how AliPay and WeChat Pay succeeded in China. They jointly launched PromptPay which, once a...
During the Fintech disruption, Thai banks were afraid of disruption from the Fintech startups, with how AliPay and WeChat Pay succeeded in China. They jointly launched PromptPay which, once a major bank subsidized the transfer fee, all banks now do and so intraborder transfers are free up to 500k baht (but you can just do multiples)
The effect is now people go cashless with some shops also go cashfree (although credit card accepted with minimum 100-1500 baht - Thais don't like any fee).
The government uses this data to detect tax dodging and so some mom and pop shops that don't pay tax no longer accept QR payment.
As for tourism, you can now buy a prepaid card that is combined with an app you can pay like a local now. Thai people using some banks also can use PromptPay cross border with merchants accepting LAO PAY, Singapore's NETS and some Japanese merchants accept Thai QR. Some banks are also part of the AliPay+ or UnionPay QR payment network and their EDC does accept those payments. There are no fees, which are hidden into the exchange rate.
I changed the original title because it makes Pix sound way more revolutionary than it really is. It changes nothing about how money works, but it is an efficient and reliable payment method that is free for all Brazilians to use.
EDIT: AFAIK there is no Pix app and if there is one you don't have to use it. Pix is embedded in every banking app. You use it through your own banking app.
Kind of sounds like Interact in Canada. Non-profit started by banks. Every bank uses it. It works so well and is generally free to use with most banks. Sounds similar unless I am misunderstanding Pix.
It would be interesting to read more about how Pix works in Brazil just for its own sake, but "some other country's government is able to do it" is only weak evidence that the US should consider doing the same. Currently, the US federal government has some pretty severe problems.
Sure. It is just a simple system that works well. You have a key which can be your CPF (kind of a citizens' number), your phone number, or your email. You can also have that in the form of a QR code. You give that to people, and they input it on their banking app. They can then send you money instantly. It shows your full name before confirming the transaction. So it is a transfer method and a payment method that is universal and works very well. You do need a bank account, but every Brazilian can have one for free. Even homeless. They can get everything they need from an ATM. If you write your key on a piece of paper or print the QR code, you can take payment/transfers without having a smartphone at all, which is great for those who cannot afford one.
For people using Zelle in the US, there are warnings to beware of scams, and limits on how much money you can send. Is this an issue for Pix?
Yes, that is an issue. It seems like it is the Central Bank who's policing. There are transfer limits, specially at night, which is when most crimes occur. I remember not being able to make a large purchase at 2 am or something. Scams do happen.
EDIT: most crimes occur at night because I am talking mostly about kidnappings. Someone forcing you to make transfers at gunpoint. Regular non-violent scams are a problem as well, but the lower limits at nigth are a response to violent crime. These transfer limits aready existed before Pix, so it's not like this is a new variety of crime caused by Pix. The criminals merely used other forms of transaction before.
If your concern is that the federal government can't be trusted to undermine Visa/Mastercard via mandating a universal bank transfer system, better than the horrifically slow ACH, there are bigger problems at play.
It's futile anyway. We can't even get sane tax filing because of Turbotax. You think Visa/Mastercard/Stripe/Paypal/etc are gonna give up their cash cow without a fight?
I'm not aware of any technical reasons the US couldn't make an equivalent. Private banks already operate Zelle in the US which is worse and less efficient. The Fed and Treasury issuing a digital currency is well-trodden ground that'd have significant efficiency benefits!
Every cent that's shaved off transaction costs is arguably a good thing if you want to encourage transactions. It's good to make it easier to share and transfer money however people want.
Though as long as MasterCard and Visa dominate, I'll keep using my cashback credit cards.
It's not technical. It's that the Trump administration would probably use the data to go after their enemies.
But they can already get all the transaction data they want from private banks. There's only an illusion of separation under Trump.
Having to go to the banks for it is a bit more friction than DOGE running a SQL query.
During the Fintech disruption, Thai banks were afraid of disruption from the Fintech startups, with how AliPay and WeChat Pay succeeded in China. They jointly launched PromptPay which, once a major bank subsidized the transfer fee, all banks now do and so intraborder transfers are free up to 500k baht (but you can just do multiples)
The effect is now people go cashless with some shops also go cashfree (although credit card accepted with minimum 100-1500 baht - Thais don't like any fee).
The government uses this data to detect tax dodging and so some mom and pop shops that don't pay tax no longer accept QR payment.
As for tourism, you can now buy a prepaid card that is combined with an app you can pay like a local now. Thai people using some banks also can use PromptPay cross border with merchants accepting LAO PAY, Singapore's NETS and some Japanese merchants accept Thai QR. Some banks are also part of the AliPay+ or UnionPay QR payment network and their EDC does accept those payments. There are no fees, which are hidden into the exchange rate.