UK-based payments company Boku has begun processing live Pix transactions in Brazil, following the award of a Payment Institution licence by the Central Bank of Brazil in July 2025. The launch makes Boku a regulated Pix participant, giving global merchants access to Brazil's real-time payments infrastructure through a locally licensed partner.
Pix, Brazil's instant payment system, has grown rapidly since its launch. It now processes more transactions in Brazil than Visa and Mastercard combined and has been adopted by more than 150 million people, representing approximately 70% of the country's population.
Regulatory and technical milestones
Since receiving its licence, Boku has fulfilled the requirements to operate as a regulated Payment Institution in Brazil, including authorisations to provide payment initiation and e-money services, and has obtained regulatory clearance to move into live operation.
Through its participation in the Sistema de Pagamentos Instantâneos (SPI) network, Boku enables merchants to offer account-to-account payments to Brazilian consumers. From launch, the company supports one-time Pix payments, with settlement available both locally and cross-border.
CEO Stuart Neal said the launch represented a significant step for merchants seeking a regulated route into Brazil, mentioning that Pix has become a must-have payment method in Brazil, and it also reflects a much bigger shift in global payments. Neal added that governments, regulators, and consumers are increasingly backing domestic payment infrastructure that is fast, secure and built around local needs.
Roadmap and market context
Boku's product roadmap for Brazil includes Pix Automatico, which will support recurring payments, and Pix JSR, which enables Pix transactions without redirection. These additions are intended to support tokenized recurring payments, cross-border flows, and other use cases as the Pix ecosystem continues to expand.
Neal also noted that Boku's position as a regulated local partner would allow merchants to access one of the world's most widely adopted real-time payment systems while bypassing the friction associated with traditional card networks.
Strategic implications
Brazil represents one of the most significant real-time payments markets globally, and Pix's rapid adoption has reshaped the country's payments landscape. For global merchants, the ability to offer Pix through a regulated local partner addresses a meaningful barrier to entry in a market where the payment method has become a consumer default.
Boku's approach, combining direct access to local payment rails with the licensing, banking, and operational infrastructure required to operate at scale, reflects a broader trend among international payment providers seeking to establish regulated local presences rather than routing transactions through third-party intermediaries. The move also positions Boku within a wider shift towards payment sovereignty, as domestic instant payment schemes gain ground relative to international card networks across multiple markets.
