Pix Evolution and Implementation

FUTURE SUMMARY PRESENTATION IDEALIZATION EVOLUTION NUMBERS 1.4 Pix and the strategic agenda of the BCB The BCB's current strategic agenda, the "Agenda BCB #", was created with the aim of promoting financial democratization, through the definition of a a work agenda centered on technological evolution as a way to improve structural issues of the financial and payments system. The Agenda BCB# is structured around six dimensions: inclusion, competitiveness, transparency, education, sustainability and excellence. Pix is part of the innovation actions that make up the competitiveness dimension, aiming to encourage competition both in the National Financial System (SFN) and in the SPB, in addition to reduce the cost of retail payments instruments. The open environment, which allows the participation of any institution¹¹ that provides payment services (traditional banks, digital banks, fintechs, finance companies, credit cooperatives, among others), is a key feature of Pix, which stimulates more competition and, consequently, higher quality and lower price for the consumer. Evidence of this increased competition is the low concentration of transactions and financial volume among Pix participants, indicating the absence of participants with market power at both the paying and receiving end, as detailed in section 3.4. Despite being included in the competitiveness dimension, Pix also contributes to the achievement of the objectives outlined within the scope of the inclusion dimension. From this perspective, the high degree of adoption of Pix in such a short life span demonstrates that the Brazilian population, in general, has been very receptive to the new manner of making payments and transfers. Another aspect worth mentioning is the large segment of the population that, in the 12 months prior to the launch of Pix, had not performed eletronic transfers (e.g. TED) and is now a Pix user¹². In this sense, Pix has been collaborating to facilitate access to the payment market, which is the gateway to the financial system, for Brazilian citizens and companies. Pix, still in its early years, has already been able to fulfill the objectives pursued by the Agenda BCB#. The goal is to make Pix to evolve on an ongoing basis, hence providing new features, so that the retail payments market becomes increasingly competitive and inclusive. 11 It is worth mentioning that there are minimum requirements, including operational requirements, that need to be met so that these institutions can become Pix participants. 12 See Central Bank of Brazil. Financial Citizenship Report, 2021. Available at <https://www.bcb.gov.br/content/cidadaniafinanceira/documentos_ cidadania/RIF/Relatorio_de_Cidadania_Financeira_2021.pdf>; and Central Bank of Brazil. The use of TED and Pix by the Brazilian population, in Banking Economy Report, 2021. Available at < https://www.bcb.gov.br/publicacoes/relatorioeconomiabancaria >. BRAND AND COMMUNICATION STRATEGY It was essential to create a unique name and a strong brand in order to the public easily recognize the new means of payment, associate it with its characteristics and thus facilitate its adoption. The Pixbrand, launched in February 2020, is based on technology, transaction and pixel, and it represents the transposition of the limits of the financial system, communication between market agents and the solidity of Pixel. In addition to the challenge of creating a simple, memorable and easily identifiable brand, it needed to be widely publicized. The BCB has been using the concept of "integrated communication strategy", which encompasses communication planning, universal brand creation, public and press relations, promotion of events and social media and internal marketing campaigns. In this sense, the BCB has coordinated efforts with the Pix participating institutions that yielded good results for publicizing the brand through multiple channels, such as apps, websites, social networks, radio and TV ads and public events broadcast live, such as the 'Conexão Pix' (Pix Connection), which featured two series of webinars aimed at IT companies and startups, financial and payment institutions and retail agents, and 'Circuito Pix' (Pix Circuit), focusing on regulation, brands and specificities related to technology. BCB specialists participated in outreaches with sectors of the payment and banking industries, broadcasts and podcasts promoted on social media channels, besides the establishment of partnerships with associations representing retail and other segments that could benefit from the use of Pix. Before the ecosystem launching, content directed to people with hearing impairment was produced in partnership with the Federal Government alongside with educational videos published on YouTube. During the launching period, the BCB team also mobilized to grant more than 50 interviews about Pix characteristics that echoed in more than 100 articles in national newspapers, radio and TV. The BCB also made use of organic social media campaigns and digital influencers engagement, in addition to maintaining a specific web page on the BCB website dedicated to Pix and FAQs, which are constantly updated with relevant information.13 The Pix's communication initiatives also aimed at a closer relationship with digital influencers, who could potentially reach more than 20 million users focused on technology, innovation, financial education and finance. The BCB streaming events 'Pix & Tech' and 'Pix & Finance' were attended by 30 digital influencers and allowed for the dissemination of content related to Pix in various media. The results of these combined efforts helped in the rapid public adoption of Pix and brand awareness success. In 2021, the third most searched topic in the Google Trends "How to" category was "How to make a Pix transfer?". The Pix brand has achieved such success that it occupies the 22nd position among the top popular brands in Brazil, according to a survey carried out in 2022 by the advertising agency VMLY&R, which analyzed 1,600 brands in the country.14 X = X - X pix powered by Banco Central 13 The Pix page is available at < https://www.bcb.gov.br/en/financialstability/pix_en > and the Q&A page at < https://www.bcb.gov. br/en/financialstability/pixfaqen >. 14 See <https://www.estadao.com.br/economia/pix-marca-supera-nubank/> (only in Portuguese). 9

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