David Vélez and Roberto Campos Neto discuss the next frontier of global financial services: Pix, Open Finance, and tokenization

São Paulo, August 05, 2025 – Pix inaugurated a technological revolution in the global financial sector, which will be propelled even further by the integration of instant payments with Open Finance and the tokenization of finances. Artificial intelligence is the driving force behind this triad that is already underway to generate greater access, financial education, and global integration. This is what David Vélez, founder and CEO, and Roberto Campos Neto, newly arrived Vice-Chairman and Global Head of Public Policy at Nubank, discuss in a new episode of the Nu Videocast.

Campos Neto, who presided over the Central Bank of Brazil between 2019 and 2024 and was largely responsible for implementing Pix and Open Finance in the country, explains that the instant payment system “was not an isolated idea, but part of a larger plan to make financial intermediation more inclusive and competitive.”

Vélez highlights that Open Finance combined with Pix is a highly transformational infrastructure that allows for greater competitiveness in the financial sector, effectively translating into lower interest rates for consumers.

“There is some data on fintech and financial services competition in Brazil that shows that, in more or less ten years, the percentage of lending from fintechs has gone from about 3% to 25%. Open Finance accelerated this because data ultimately is the big piece that any new entrant needs to be able to use and lend, being a critical part of this puzzle,” he says.

According to Campos Neto, of the innovation plan outlined in 2018, Brazil has only achieved 30% – there is still much technological innovation to be used in favor of the economy. “I know we are going to have a huge interaction between tokenization and all this artificial intelligence process, it’s going to generate market segmentation, and even more financial inclusion,” says Campos Neto. He says he decided to join Nu because he understands that the company is well-positioned to lead this revolution.

Vélez explains that the invitation to the executive aligns with Nu’s future plans: “Regulation, public policy, and technology are key ingredients for us to be able to strengthen our presence in the countries we already serve, but also to scale globally.”

The episode also reinforces the leadership role of Nu and Brazil in global financial innovation, with Pix serving as inspiration for similar initiatives in countries like Colombia and Mexico. “Brazil has become the future of financial services in the world. We are living in the future. I think the world’s payment system will be similar to Pix,” says Vélez.

Focus on customer experience

For the Vice-Chairman, the difference between countries that succeeded in implementing an instant payment system and those that failed goes beyond regulation. After the system is in place, the differentiator lies in how financial institutions build innovative products and the level of concern for user experience.

Vélez explains how Nubank created its own functionalities to integrate Pix into the app, taking the lead in offering the product and generating significant time and money savings for consumers. “We are taking advantage of the programmability that Pix offers to provide modalities such as scheduled Pix and Pix on credit. One of the most successful launches in the last two months was installment Pix. This gives a lot of control and flexibility to consumers.”

This impact could be boosted by regulatory and technological knowledge exchanges between countries, argues Vélez – a challenge that, for him, would minimize transaction barriers and benefit consumers.

Artificial intelligence

For both, much of this future transformation will be enhanced by artificial intelligence, which can democratize access to financial knowledge, says Vélez. “Someone who earns a thousand reais a month can receive the same quality of advice as the richest investor in the world,” he states.

Watch the full episode: