Pix promotes financial inclusion and a greater offer of banking services

One of Brazil's most popular payment methods, Pix is increasingly winning the hearts of Brazilians. With the recent record of 227 million transactions in a single day, according to Central Bank data, the platform has the capacity to promote financial inclusion in the country, being responsible for bringing more than 71 million citizens to the market, according to the agency. However, another point that deserves attention is that this tool also helps banks increase their service offerings. To give you an idea, a recent study by ACI Worldwide indicates that real-time methods will contribute to 2.8 million new account holders, representing potential profits of US$8.9 billion for Brazilian financial institutions by 2028.

According to Igor Castroviejo, commercial director of 1datapipe, a consumer insights platform based on Artificial Intelligence, Pix was responsible for democratizing the way people make transactions in Brazil. “This method made things more practical, as it is now possible to make payments without having to carry a wallet around. With a cell phone and a data plan, the user can make payments in various places without having to pay bank fees. Because of this, the platform gained great popularity, with around 42 billion transactions in the last year, according to Central Bank data.”

Due to the abundant use of Pix in Brazil, banks now have an additional source of data when offering products, especially those related to credit. “For a long time, authorities relied on very superficial information when making an assessment, such as the fact that the person had a bank account or a formal job. However, in Brazil, there are more than 4 million people without a bank account, according to the Locomotiva Institute, and 38% working informally, according to the PNAD. So, how do we include these people?”, the executive questions.

The fact is that a study by the Central Bank revealed that the states with the fewest bank branches are the ones that registered the most transactions via Pix, with the Northern region standing out the most, with 21 transactions per person. "All of this turns into gold for banking institutions. Through the use of Artificial Intelligence solutions combined with data analysis, banks can reach a greater layer of information from potential customers, such as online purchase history, internet behavior, and payments for bills or services that were made via Pix. Thus, without that previous limitation, more people are covered by institutions and have access to credit. At the same time, the authorities can close more deals," he explains.

For November, for example, the launch of Pix by Proximity is expected, a modality in which the payment method can be registered in digital wallets, which makes life easier for the consumer, who can make a transaction without accessing the bank's application. "In this way, a banking institution can take advantage of the data from this platform to evaluate customer behavior patterns, identifying usage trends, peak activity times, and channel preferences. This information can feed credit or fraud prevention models, assessing payment capacity and financial behavior based on its use," concludes Igor Castroviejo.