Pix is a state-owned instant payments system in Brazil that allows people, companies, and government entities to make money transfers 24 hours a day, seven days a week, in a matter of seconds. Its immense popularity has dethroned cash as king and is putting card networks and Brazil’s three-decades-old cash-based payment voucher—the boleto bancário—on notice.

Key Question: What’s driving Pix’s immense popularity in Brazil, and how will it reshape the country’s payments industry?

Key Stat: Roughly 145 million consumers in Brazil made more than 36 billion Pix transactions in 2023, according to official figures from the country’s central bank. That’s nearly two-thirds of the country’s entire population—or 86.0% of adults ages 16 and older—and represents over a third of all banking transactions.