According to Statista, fintech in Latin America (LatAm) suffered in 2023, with less than $2billion invested in fintech ventures – a drastic drop from 2021’s value of $6billion. Nonetheless, in the face of this hardship, fintechs have still continued to emerge and find success in the region, and across 2024, investment levels surged back up over $2billion again. With the future of fintech looking optimistic in 2025, Em Conversa looks to explore how the LatAm region can prosper once more.
In July 2024, we got the opportunity to speak to the CEO and co-founder of the Brazilian paytech PagBrasil, Ralf Germer. At the time, PagBrasil had just launched two new services looking to make the major Brazilian payment method Pix, more accessible for Brazilians across the globe: International Pix and Pix Roaming. With both services having seen huge success in the six months since their launch, we caught up with Germer again to see what PagBrasil has in store next.
What has been the most impactful partnership in the past year?
Pix has been a giant windfall for Brazil and is now responsible for 90 per cent of bank transactions in Brazil. What we have done at PagBrasil is to enable ways for Brazilian citizens, Brazilian tourists abroad, and foreign tourists travelling to Brazil to utilise Pix services – providing businesses and consumers with innovative and seamless means to leverage Pix inside and out of the country.
Pix saves consumers and merchants exorbitant transaction fees, and merchants receive immediate payment rather than waiting up to days for credit card payments.
We created new Pix solutions – like International Pix, Pix Roaming, and 1-Click Pix (Pix With Embedded Authentication) – setting the standard for payments in Brazil and beyond.
Recently, the number of countries accepting International Pix has increased thanks to collaboration with local partners and various vendors in Europe, the US, and Latin America. We are seeing growing adoption of our International Pix solution, as well as Pix Roaming, with transactions ranging from small purchases like coffee to luxury hotel bookings worth tens of thousands of dollars.
PagBrasil announced a series of partnerships in 2024 and early 2025 including the following:
B89
The number of countries accepting PagBrasil’s International Pix has recently increased, thanks to collaboration with local partners such as B89. The Peruvian fintech company announced its partnership with PagBrasil in 2024 to offer International Pix to merchants in multiple Latin American countries including Panama, Colombia, Peru, and Bolivia.
This allows Brazilian citizens, either tourists or residents, to pay in Brazilian reais with a guaranteed exchange rate at the time of purchase, eliminating uncertainty in exchange rate fluctuations.
Wipay
Another International Pix partner is Wipay, a Spanish company specialising in payment technology, which has announced the arrival of the Pix Instant Payment System in Europe. This collaboration between Wipay and PagBrasil makes transactions more convenient and cost-effective for Brazilian tourists in regions throughout Spain and Portugal, offering a unique experience during their stay.
Bancard
The most recent announcement is with Bancard, a technology services platform, that is partnering with PagBrasil to enable Paraguayans travelling to Brazil to use Pix directly from their preferred banking apps (Pix Roaming).
This eliminates the need for currency exchange or carrying cash. Through this collaboration, Bancard will offer this service to banks in Paraguay, enhancing convenience and financial accessibility for Paraguayan travellers.
Implementing PagBrasil’s Pix Roaming enables foreigners to make payments with Pix in Brazil through Bancard’s technology and Paraguay’s financial institutions via QR codes, bringing economic advantages and a significant social impact. Utilising Pix facilitates seamless transactions for tourists while fostering greater financial integration between both countries.
How did Pix evolve in 2024?
Since its launch, Pix has become a widely adopted payment method in Brazil, with over 173 million registrations and more than 155 million people using it to make payments online and in physical stores via mobile phones.
The rapid adoption of Pix as the leading payment method in Brazil, along with continued e-commerce growth, is driving the demand for innovative digital payment solutions. Additionally, the increase in cross-border e-commerce and global companies looking to expand into Brazil presents a significant opportunity for PagBrasil’s tailored solutions.
What we have done at PagBrasil is to enable alternative ways for Brazilian tourists to pay abroad and foreign tourists travelling to Brazil to utilise Pix services—providing businesses and consumers with innovative and seamless means to leverage Pix inside and outside the country.
Seamless and affordable international alternative payment methods will empower individuals and businesses, fostering global economic participation.
The leading projects we are running at PagBrasil that utilize the Pix ecosystem, International Pix, as well as Pix Roaming will profoundly impact Brazil’s citizens, tourists traveling into Brazil, and the global merchant community. The key benefits include merchants’ ability to integrate Pix as a payment method in their app, website, or physical point of sale. Moreover, Pix offers lower fees compared to traditional payment methods, with no risk of chargebacks, helping merchants reduce operating costs.
What are you most excited about in 2025?
In 2025, PagBrasil received authorisation from the Central Bank of Brazil to operate as a payment institution (PI) in the electronic money issuer category. The Central Bank granted this license to PagBrasil in just six months — a record time — highlighting the fintech’s efficiency in navigating the rigorous compliance process and creating Pix extensions that benefit the financial well-being of Brazil’s citizens and the tourism industry. This achievement marks a significant milestone in the expansion of digital payment solutions.
With its newly acquired PI license and a robust pipeline of innovative products, PagBrasil is set to play a significant role in shaping the future of cross-border payments and the Latin American domestic economy.
The PI license enables PagBrasil to create additional innovative products, expanding and diversifying its portfolio, like PagBrasil’s current Pix-related products: International Pix, which allows Brazilians to make Pix payments abroad, as well as Pix Roaming, which enables foreigners to use Pix while in Brazil. The license also permits these products to support transactions exceeding $10,000 and cash withdrawals abroad—a valuable feature in countries like Mexico, where physical currency is still widely used.
The PI license is a testament to our strength as a fintech – now officially recognised by the Central Bank. It opens important doors for product development and further solidifies the credibility PagBrasil has built over its 15-year history. With this milestone, we are even more committed to democratizing access to financial services and addressing the needs of an increasingly connected world.
In 2025, PagBrasil will continue expanding International Pix across Latin America and strengthen its presence in key markets such as Argentina, Uruguay, Mexico, and Chile. Additionally, International Pix is being solidified in various regions of the United States and several European countries, including Spain, Portugal, and the Netherlands.
In 2025, a new chapter for Pix is being written with the introduction of Pix with Embedded Authentication, also known as Pix in a No-Redirection Journey. This feature, being implemented by Pix system participants (banks, payment institutions, etc.), is expected to transform how Brazilians make Pix payments and significantly boost merchants’ sales conversion rates.
We’ve developed a solution for Pix with Embedded Authentication – the 1-Click Pix. It allows customers to simply click ‘pay’ and authenticate using facial recognition, biometrics, or a password—all within the store’s environment.
This experience becomes available from the second payment onward. The first time requires additional steps for the user to authorize the payment processor and the financial institution to consider future debits without redirection, ensuring security in transactions. Experiencing a No-Redirection Journey—such as with Pix with Embedded Authentication—marks another step toward truly invisible payments.
What is next for Pix Roaming and International Pix
Our goal at PagBrasil is to improve the consumer experience and make the buying process as smooth as possible.
Fintechs have the power to transform lives. By prioritising financial inclusion, simplifying payment processes, and empowering individuals with greater control over their finances, we can contribute to a more equitable and prosperous future for all. We are doing this in several ways:
- New International Pix Partnerships: PagBrasil’s focus for the future is on expanding its existing products to more markets and banking partners, adapting our technology to suit different cultural norms around payments, such as tipping practices in various countries.
- New Pix Features: Looking ahead at the upcoming Pix features, Pix Garantido (Guaranteed Pix) presents significant potential. This initiative by the Central Bank of Brazil allows banks to guarantee future payments, potentially transforming instalment purchases and credit offerings in the country. By enabling consumers to split payments over time with Pix—much like credit card instalments—this feature could reshape purchasing habits.
Under the system, a consumer’s bank guarantees future payments to merchants, reducing risk for sellers. Merchants receive the full amount upfront, while consumers repay their banks in instalments. Although the fee structure has yet to be disclosed, banks are expected to charge for the service to manage associated risks.
This expansion of Pix’s capabilities is poised to further revolutionize Brazil’s digital payment ecosystem, offering greater flexibility for consumers and driving potential sales growth for merchants.
Final thoughts
At PagBrasil, we believe in positively impacting society with an inclusive and enhanced payment ecosystem. We want to simplify online transactions and democratize access to e-commerce, always focusing on providing excellent service.
We leverage innovation to create an invisible payment experience. The act of paying should just happen in the background – it should be seamless and frictionless for the consumer who wants to pay for the goods or services as well as for the merchant who wants to receive payment, from our perspective.
This is why our mission at PagBrasil consists of the 4 I’s: Include, Integrate, Innovate, and Inspire.
I believe that the future of payments relies on “instant payments.” They’re becoming an economic factor, with potential financial benefits facilitated by these immediate transactions. They will be the lifeblood of transactions not just in Brazil but worldwide, including in developing countries.
Countries that have embraced them have witnessed transformations in how consumers, businesses, and governments manage finances. Interoperability between these instant payment systems is also a key trend that will contribute to more connected global commerce.
