Brazil launches Phase 3 of Open Banking

The new phase is the penultimate stage of the implementation of the model by the Central Bank, whose completion is scheduled for 2022. The new stage, which was scheduled to begin on 30 September 2021, will be marked by the sharing of the payment initiation service – notably PIX transactions – and new possibilities for the consumer, including price comparisons, rates, and credit offers.

The biggest change that phase 3 of Open Banking in Brazil brings is the regulation of payment initiation from any online platform. That is, the ability to pay for a product or service using Pix, without entering the bank’s app. The process to reach this stage started back in October 2020, when the Central Bank created a new modality called payment initiation service provider (PISP).

The provider, or initiator of payments, is responsible for carrying out the transactions, but does not participate in the financial flow. In other words, it does not have direct access to the value, acting only as an intermediary between the consumer, the payment institution, and the company.

The third stage of Open Banking will unfold in 4 parts, to allow banks and fintechs regulated by the Central Bank to have more time to adapt their systems to the changes that are to come. Thus, institutions will have different deadlines for the availability of resources that can be used by payment initiators. The first part will regulate payments via PIX, while the other methods will be introduced in 2022, according to the schedule below:

• 15 February 2022 – payments made with TED and transfers between accounts of the same bank;
• 30 June 2022 – payments via bank slip;
• 30 September 2022 – payment by debit account.

In addition to the initiation of payments, as these solutions are implemented, regulated institutions will be able to share their services and send credit operation proposals (such as loans and financing) to banks, fintechs, or cooperatives. This stage is scheduled to start on 30 March 2022.

In this way, consumers will be able to compare rates, interest, and costs of institutions, increasing competition and, consequently, improving the offer of services.