Last year, Pix withdrew R$1.5 billion in revenues from the largest banks listed on B3 —Banco do Brasil, Itaú Unibanco, Bradesco and Santander.
Even with this impact, the revenues from services of the four grew and reached R$ 122 billion. In January of this year, according to the BC, 1.3 billion transactions were carried out via Pix.
That’s more than six times the total for the same month of 2021.
Before the Central Bank’s tool, the most comprehensive transfer options were the TED, in which the amount is transferred to the beneficiary’s account on the same day, and the DOC, in which the credit occurs the next day.
Both transfers are paid, but in general (paid) bank account service packages include a few free transfers per month.
According to industry executives, it’s about TED and DOC that Pix has made the most progress. For individuals, transfers are free, and they account for 72% of the total.
To avoid an erosion of the revenue base, banks need to change the way they monetize each customer. The movement is the same as what institutions have to do in the face of competition with fintechs.
Banco do Brasil was the most affected by Pix and saw its current account revenues drop 17% in 2021. The bank accounts for almost 30% of the volume handled through the tool.
The president of BB, Fausto Ribeiro, says that it is natural that in the short term the current account generates fewer fees. “We are looking to make up for this loss with other services, with stronger financial advice.”
Bradesco has also been looking for new lines of business. “The job is to create new revenue lines to compensate,” said Octavio de Lazari Jr, the bank’s president. Part of the strategy involves the bank’s digital brands. Together, Next and Bitz had more than 14 million customers as of December. “86% of the people who are in digital assets did not have a bank account,” said Lazari.
Santander showed pessimism. For the chairman of the bank’s board, Sergio Rial, the option is to reduce costs. “There is no (how to compensate for the drop in revenue). You will have to optimize”, he said, during a press conference.
Banks, however, also see advantages in Pix. With the new phases of the tool, the sector is looking for an entry point on the wave.
Itaú, for example, which saw current account revenue drop 1.8% last year, is developing, within the BC regulatory framework, a mechanism to grant credit via Pix.
“It’s still in an embryonic stage, it’s an evolution from Pix to Pix credit,” said the bank’s president, Milton Maluhy. “Pix is here to stay. We don’t fight with what’s good for the customer.”
The information is from the newspaper O Estado de S. Paulo.
Source: CNN Brasil
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