Brazil's government-run payments system has become dominant

Post by danielmarkbruce » Wed, Apr 09, 2025, 4:12 AM UTC

FearNotDaniel wrote: post #525

danielmarkbruce wrote: post #483

Earlier quoted context omitted.

On top of that, the BIS isnt even needed for global real time payments. A company like Wise (formerly transferwise) or any similar entity can just hold accounts in each country and if the local settlement is real time they can also do real time global settlement by just updating their db and sending the money real time in the receiving location.

> Wise (formerly transferwise) Off-topic, but: this is possibly one of the world's dumbest rebranding exercises. I forget now how many years ago they made the change, but I've never heard anyone outside the company itself refer to it as just "Wise" without adding "(formerly transferwise)".

Post by Spivak » Wed, Apr 09, 2025, 4:25 AM UTC

kspacewalk2 wrote: post #555

Spivak wrote: post #504

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> that's the only way to do it without incurring huge transaction fees and / or long processing time. You're joking right? I just did a $25,000 wire internationally with a currency exchange in the middle and it cost $75. It went through in one business day. You'll get more hassle trying to withdraw from your exchange than that. When I bought my house and did the wire it cost $15. Where are you getting huge transactio…

The flat fee is a small part of what that transfer costs. The real transaction fee is embedded in the exchange rate. 2% markup is not an unheard of amount, which I guess would make your total cost $515 and not $15. There's a reason Wise is a huge business and people in Canada resort to "Norbert's gambit" to exchange currency with minimal transaction costs.

Post by dakial1 » Wed, Apr 09, 2025, 4:32 AM UTC

rat87 wrote: post #548

dakial1 wrote: post #393

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Pix proposition is very valuable for governments, as it is the best way of controlling transactions, inside the country and cross-border. To you second point, I think the pix penetration/popularity proves that the majority of the people trust the government for that. There are 2 key reasons for its success: It was mandatory for Banks to adhere to the system and there are no fees for using it. Once multiple countries…

Cash is arguably more secure and likely less traceable and easier to use if you don't trust governments. I don't see much use case for crypto other then illegal activities (although possibly not always immoral)

Post by locallost » Wed, Apr 09, 2025, 4:41 AM UTC

paintbox wrote: post #54

afarah1 wrote: post #15

WhatsApp is omnipresent for communication in Brazil, and WhatsApp Pay was ready before Pix, but the government blocked the launch to launch Pix first.[1] I rarely see this mentioned. [1] https://www.reuters.com/article/technology/brazil-suspends-w...

It's a question of national security not to let Meta eat that cake, and Brasil made the right choice. Tangentially related, I've heard talk of EU alternative to VISA and Mastercard, which I also believe is the right direction.

Post by maronato » Wed, Apr 09, 2025, 4:54 AM UTC

whimsicalism wrote: post #318

ave_b_2011 wrote: post #133

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is presented as problematic, but I don’t think it’s a negative thing. You wouldn’t want a foreign company with billions of dollars in their war chest in charge of your countries payment system.

actually, foreign capital and foreign investment is good - and fair play before the law facilitates that. securitization and anti-globalization makes us all poorer, worse off, and more prone to conflict. lawfare is an addictive drug and can lead to serious outcomes, as history in Brazil shows any number of times - like even with the current president.