Brazil's
Central Bank Announces Near-Instant Payment System as Response to Bitcoin
Brazil’s central bank has
announced the launch of a new near-instant payment system that will allow for
peer-to-peer payments to be processed in up to 10 seconds, in a direct
response to bitcoin itself.
Local news outlet Livecoins reports the platform is set to
go live on November 10. The publication cited Roberto Campos Neto, president
of Brazil’s central bank, saying PIX was a response to the “new digital
economy” marked by bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. He was quoted as
saying:
“Pix came from a need for people to have a
payment instrument that is both cheap, fast, transparent and secure. If we
think about what has happened in terms of the creation of bitcoins, cryptocurrencies
and other encrypted assets, it comes from the need to have an instrument with
such characteristics.”
Per Neto, PIX will support
Brazil’s financial transformation and help cut costs by reducing the need for
physical money. The system will let its users pay utility bills, send money
in P2P transactions, and more via various methods. These will include QR codes,
address keys similar to those in cryptocurrency wallets, NFC technology, and
more.
