Brazilian and European Central Banks are Negotiating to Connect Their Instant Payment Systems (Folha de S.Paulo)
Banco Central do Brasil (BCB) is reportedly negotiating with the European Central Bank (ECB) to connect its Pix instant payment system to the ECB’s Trans-European Automated Real-time Gross Settlement Express Transfer System (TARGET) Instant Payment Settlement (TIPS) platform. The talks are in a preliminary phase but are already included in the ECB’s work schedule with its studies for the connection currently in the pre-investigation phase, with legal, technical, security, and operational analyses expected to be completed by the end of September. If negotiations progress, the expectation is to launch an operational pilot program in June 2028. [Folha de S.Paulo]
https://www1.folha.uol.com.br/internacional/es/economia/2026/09/brasil-negocia-conectar-el-sistema-de-pagos-instantaneos-con-la-plataforma-europea.shtml
A systematic review of 140 peer-reviewed articles in the International Journal of Financial Studies (IJFS) examines retail central bank digital currency (CBDC) design considerations, proposing a structural “CBDC design trilemma.” This framework asserts that retail CBDCs cannot simultaneously maximize privacy, financial stability, and regulatory compliance. The study finds scholarly consensus converging on a suboptimal “zone of compromise” — specifically two-tier architectures with tiered privacy — where stabilizing features inherently degrade user adoption or anonymity. This operationalizes these trade-offs for policymakers, clarifying that technical innovations cannot fully dissolve fundamental tensions between regulatory mandates and disintermediation risks. However, whether this theoretical trilemma strictly binds in practice remains unverified, given a critical deficit of empirical data from live deployments.” [IJFD]
BTW if you want to see a complete database of my DFC-related posts going back years, including many that didn’t make the Daily Digest cut, click here.
FYI I produce a monthly digest of digital fiat currency (DFC) developments exclusively for the official sector (e.g., central banks, ministries of finance and international financial institution (e.g., the BIS, IMF, OECD, World Bank)) plus academics and firms that are active in the DFC space (commercial banks, technology providers, consultants, etc.). (DFCs include central bank digital currency (CBDC), stablecoins and tokenized deposits.) It goes out via email on the first business day of every month, and if you’re interested in being on the mailing list, please email me at john@kiffmeister.com.
