Brazil’s Pix Lays Foundation for ‘Perfect’ Digital Financial Ecosystem

Brazil isn’t just famous for samba, soccer and carnival anymore. It is now drawing attention for something else: its meteoric rise as the world’s most digitally engaged nation, particularly in finance and payments.

The reason? Brazil’s demographic and regulatory environment has created a near-perfect sandbox for FinTech evolution.

André Cazotto, investor relations officer, M&A, and corporate strategy officer at PicPay, explained to PYMNTS that three key ingredients are fueling Brazil’s digital momentum: a young, tech-savvy population, near-universal smartphone access (approaching 90%), and a regulator with vision.

“The central bank played a huge role in digital inclusion and competition. Pix — the instant payment system — was a game-changer. In 2024 alone, 155 million people used Pix for transactions totaling over 27 trillion reais,” Cazotto said, noting that he sees this as more than just payment volume.

“It helped millions of Brazilians access financial services for the first time,” he said. “The combination of demographics, technology and regulation has made Brazil a model for FinTech growth.”

Redefining Finance and Payments

Unlike many governments that lag behind technological shifts, Brazil’s regulators are ahead of the curve. The central bank and other financial authorities have taken a proactive stance, crafting a framework that encourages experimentation while safeguarding consumer interests.

“We were the forerunners of instant payments in Brazil,” Cazotto said of PicPay. “Ten years before the central bank introduced Pix, we were already enabling P2P payments and QR code transactions.”

Founded in 2012 in Vitória, PicPay began as a digital wallet — similar to early PayPal — and scaled to become Brazil’s largest.

“We were an open platform from the start,” Cazotto said. “Any credit card from any issuer could be registered.”

That open approach laid the groundwork for an aggressive expansion into full-service digital banking. The company now boasts 60 million registered accounts and 40 million active users.

“Our strategy has shifted from wallet to comprehensive financial services,” Cazotto said. “We now offer credit cards, personal loans, insurance, investments — and it’s all gaining serious momentum. … Today, we have over 40 million cards on file. We’re actually bigger than Apple Pay in Brazil.”

Backed by a unique blend of innovation, regulatory openness, and a focus on user experience, PicPay’s story is also Brazil’s story: a case study in how technology, when done right, can scale access, unlock markets, and ignite massive growth. Indeed, 2024 marked a turning point for PicPay, noted Cazotto: Financial services now contribute 45% of total revenue, up from just 10% in 2023.

“Last year alone, we issued 11 million credit cards, originated 7 billion reais in personal loans, and signed 5 million insurance policies,” he said. “That’s how fast the model is evolving.”

Regulation, Tech as Growth Engine

One of the most important outcomes of PicPay’s growth — and Brazil’s digital finance boom at large — is how it’s closing the gap in financial inclusion. For decades, millions of Brazilians were excluded from financial services due to lack of credit history, documentation, or proximity to banks.

Customers enter through the wallet and expand into services — a progression fueled by data.

“The transaction data gives us deep insight into user behavior,” Cazotto said. “We can then cross-sell intelligently — the right product, at the right time, in the right context.”

This thinking extends to the PicPay Store (its own commerce layer), crypto, and small business financial services. The secret sauce? Speed.

“At one point, we were launching two new products a month,” Cazotto said. “That kind of velocity just doesn’t exist at incumbent banks.”

Tech isn’t just a delivery mechanism for PicPay — it’s a growth engine. Cazotto is particularly excited about PicPay’s artificial intelligence (AI) assistant, which integrates with the app and WhatsApp to handle basic banking via voice or text.

“We’re one of the top 10 global users of OpenAI,” he revealed. “AI is embedded across customer service, marketing, and even financial advice. … It’s innovation with purpose.”

FinTechs are “not just about payments anymore,” Cazotto said. “It’s about becoming the financial partner of everyday life.”