The president of the Central Bank (BC), Roberto Campos Neto, said this Friday (27) that the Pix will undergo changes in order to curb criminal practices that took place after the implementation of the system. According to São Paulo government intelligence data, since December 2020, there have been 202 crimes in the state in which criminals demanded payments via Pix. Between April and July alone, there were 151 cases of this type.
Banks pending change on Pix
Concerned with the panorama, banking institutions urged the BC to adopt some measures to mitigate these crimes. Among other things, the banks want the BC to give them the freedom to negotiate directly with customers on transfer and payment limits. Currently, banks are required to offer on Pix the same limit given to TED. So, it is only up to the customer to ask for an increase or decrease in this limit. Financial institutions also demand that the limit be negotiated according to the transaction channel. In other words, they want different limits for transactions made by cell phone, computer or ATM. Another request concerns transfer times. Banks want an adjustment of the limit by time the movement is carried out. Thus, the institution can stipulate a lower limit for late night transfers, for example. The list of requests for Pix changes also includes a period of up to 24 hours for banks to respond to customers about limit adjustments. Today, this period is, at most, one hour. On this point, the banks argue that the current rule allows the criminal to wait until the victim is able to adjust the limit. This way, you can steal as much money as possible. The Brazilian Federation of Banks (Febraban), said in a note to Folha de S. Paulo that its members prioritize customer safety. In addition, he informed that he is “constantly contributing to the Central Bank”, so that the institution improves product regulations: “In this regard, concerned with the increase in cases involving public security issues, this Federation is in contact with the technical teams of the Central Bank so that additional measures to improve the security of financial transfers are regulated as soon as possible”, he said.
What the Central Bank said
On the subject, Campos Neto commented that the increase in lightning kidnappings is not necessarily linked to the PIX. According to the BC president, this is related to the increase in the circulation of people with flexibility in distance measures. “Lightning kidnapping can be PIX, TED, DOC, anything. There were lightning kidnappings in ATMs, they were adjusting”, he added. Anyway, Campos Neto stated that he will promote changes in Pix. On Friday, he said that the agency will announce a series of measures to curb criminal practices carried out through the instant payment system. As reported by O Globo, the BC must comply with the request of the banks and block transfers at specific times. “We must announce a set of measures to make the PIX more secure, so that people can better decide how to use the PIX, block at specific times…”, he said, without giving details on when the changes will be implemented. Also Read: DeFi Tokens Jump Up 130% This Week; check out Top-5 Read also: Bitcoin won’t top gold for hundreds of years, says Fernando Ulrich Read also: Star Atlas: Solana’s new DeFi play-to-earn