Brazil Adds Balance Preview to Contactless Pix Through Open Finance

Brazil updates the contactless Pix payment journey

Brazil’s Central Bank has introduced an updated Open Finance journey that allows customers to share account balance and payment-limit information when connecting an account for contactless Pix payments.

The changes took effect on June 22, 2026. When supported by a participating digital wallet or payment initiation provider, the feature can allow customers to view relevant account information before initiating a payment.

The feature is optional. Customers must actively select the balance and limit sharing option, and institutions cannot enable it by default.

Account linking and data sharing are combined

Previously, a customer could be required to complete separate consent journeys when sharing account information and linking the same account to a payment service.

Under the updated framework, customers can authorise both actions through a combined process described by the Central Bank as an optimised journey.

The feature can be used when a customer connects an account to a payment initiation provider, including a digital wallet supporting contactless Pix. It can also apply to certain automatic transfer arrangements initiated through Open Finance.

Once activated, a supporting wallet may display the customer’s available balance and transaction limit before the payment is submitted. This gives the customer more information when deciding whether to continue with the selected account.

The feature is intended to address failed payment attempts

A contactless Pix payment may fail when the connected account does not have enough funds or when the transaction exceeds the available limit.

Displaying this information before payment initiation may help customers identify a likely problem earlier. They may then choose another account, adjust the payment or use another payment method before submitting an unsuccessful transaction.

Brazil’s Central Bank said insufficient balance is one of the main causes of payment failures through Open Finance. The new journey is intended to improve payment effectiveness and support more fluid checkout experiences.

However, the feature will not necessarily appear in every wallet immediately. Offering the balance preview is optional for service providers and depends on implementation by participating banks, wallets and payment initiation providers.

Customers retain control over data sharing

Customers can revoke permission to share their balance and limit information at any time.

They may stop sharing the information while keeping the account connected for payments. If the customer cancels the account connection or the underlying payment consent, the related access to balance and limit information also ends.

Institutions must clearly explain how the information will be used. Open Finance participants must also rely on explicit customer consent, strong authentication and standardised APIs.

What the change means for local payment experiences

The update shows how local payment methods are beginning to incorporate account information into the checkout journey.

For merchants operating in Brazil, supporting Pix is only one part of the payment experience. The information displayed before payment, the wallet’s consent flow and its ability to identify a likely payment failure may also affect how smoothly the customer completes checkout.

Businesses should monitor how the feature is implemented across the banks, wallets and payment providers used by their Brazilian customers.