Local payment methods in Latin America

Why local rails matter

For a business headquartered outside Latin America, sending USD through international wires and card networks is expensive, slow and unfamiliar to the end customer. Consumers and small businesses across Brazil, Mexico and Colombia overwhelmingly prefer paying and being paid through the local rails they already use every day — Pix, SPEI and PSE. Ignoring those rails typically means paying 3–7% in card interchange, waiting one to three days for wires to arrive and losing conversion at checkout.

Local rails also carry a distinct regulatory footprint. Each is operated or supervised by the country's central bank, each enforces its own KYC, anti-money-laundering and reporting obligations, and each is accessible only through a locally licensed institution. This guide walks through what each rail is, how it works technically, what it costs, and what an international business needs to actually plug in.

Pix — Brazil

Pix is Brazil's instant payment system, launched by the Banco Central do Brasil (BCB) in November 2020. It now clears the majority of retail payments in the country and is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, with settlement measured in seconds.

How it works

Every participating financial institution connects to the SPI (Sistema de Pagamentos Instantâneos), the messaging and settlement infrastructure operated directly by the BCB. Payers initiate a transfer by scanning a QR code, pasting a copy-and-paste string, or resolving a Pix Key — a CPF/CNPJ, email, phone or random UUID that maps to a beneficiary account through the DICT directory.

Technical characteristics

• Settlement: real-time, under 10 seconds end-to-end.
• Availability: 24/7/365, including weekends and holidays.
• Currency: Brazilian Real (BRL) only.
• Message standard: ISO 20022.
• Products: Pix Cobrança (dynamic QR), Pix Saque and Pix Troco (cash-out at merchants), Pix Automático (recurring, in progressive rollout), and Pix Devolução (returns/refunds).
• Limits: institution-defined, subject to BCB caps and night-window restrictions for retail accounts.

Regulatory access

Only institutions authorized by the BCB — banks, payment institutions, credit unions and select fintechs — can connect directly to SPI. International businesses cannot become direct Pix participants; they access Pix through a licensed participant that acts as their acquirer or payout partner. That partner is responsible for KYC on the beneficiary account, sanctions screening, AML monitoring and reporting to the BCB under Resolutions 1, 4,658 and the Pix rulebook.

SPEI — Mexico

SPEI (Sistema de Pagos Electrónicos Interbancarios) is Mexico's real-time gross settlement system, operated by Banco de México. It is the standard rail for interbank transfers in MXN and, in practice, the country's equivalent of an always-on payments backbone.

How it works

Transfers are addressed to an 18-digit CLABE (Clave Bancaria Estandarizada) that identifies the beneficiary bank and account, or to a debit-card number for smaller amounts via the linked CoDi protocol. Messages flow through Banxico's SPEI network and are settled continuously against reserve accounts held at the central bank.

Technical characteristics

• Settlement: real-time, typically under 30 seconds.
• Availability: 24/7 for the vast majority of participants; some legacy participants still operate on extended business hours.
• Currency: Mexican Peso (MXN) only.
• Addressing: CLABE (18 digits) or debit-card number via CoDi.
• Amount limits: no hard cap in the protocol; participant-level limits and enhanced due diligence apply above MXN thresholds defined by CNBV.

Regulatory access

Direct SPEI participation is limited to institutions authorized by Banxico — banks, brokerages, SOFIPOs and IFPEs (Fintech Law payment institutions). International businesses connect via a licensed partner that handles onboarding under the Ley para Regular las Instituciones de Tecnología Financiera (the Fintech Law), AML obligations under the Ley Federal para la Prevención e Identificación de Operaciones con Recursos de Procedencia Ilícita, and beneficiary-account validation.

PSE — Colombia

PSE (Pagos Seguros en Línea) is Colombia's dominant account-to-account payment method for online commerce and billers. It is operated by ACH Colombia and connects virtually every retail and commercial bank in the country.

How it works

A payer selects PSE at checkout, is redirected to their bank's online banking, authenticates, and authorizes a debit from their checking or savings account in COP. Funds are cleared through ACH Colombia and settled to the merchant's collecting account.

Technical characteristics

• Settlement: intraday during Colombian banking hours; typical merchant credit T+0 to T+1.
• Availability: 24/7 for initiation; settlement follows banking-hour windows.
• Currency: Colombian Peso (COP) only.
• Flow: redirect / hosted authentication at the payer's bank.
• Coverage: substantially all Colombian retail and commercial banks.

Regulatory access

PSE is offered to merchants through a locally domiciled collecting entity — a bank or a licensed payment aggregator (SEDPE / entidad recaudadora) — regulated by the Superintendencia Financiera de Colombia. International businesses integrate through that entity, which handles contract, KYC, funds custody and settlement to a foreign beneficiary in USD after FX.

ACH — United States

ACH (Automated Clearing House) is the batch electronic-funds network that moves the vast majority of non-card, non-wire payments in the United States. It is governed by Nacha and operated by the Federal Reserve (FedACH) and The Clearing House (EPN).

How it works

An Originator submits an ACH file — either a credit push or a debit pull — through its Originating Depository Financial Institution (ODFI). The file is batched, forwarded to the network, cleared, and delivered to the Receiving Depository Financial Institution (RDFI) for posting to the beneficiary account addressed by ABA routing number and account number.

Technical characteristics

• Settlement: standard ACH T+1 to T+2; Same Day ACH available in three daily windows for eligible transactions.
• Availability: business days only; no settlement on weekends or US federal holidays.
• Currency: US Dollar (USD) only.
• Amount limit: USD 1,000,000 per transaction for Same Day ACH; standard ACH has no protocol cap but institutional limits apply.
• Rules: Nacha Operating Rules, plus OFAC screening under US sanctions law.

Regulatory access

Only ODFIs — insured US depository institutions — may originate ACH entries. International businesses access ACH through a US bank or a Third-Party Sender operating under a signed ODFI agreement, which handles authorization capture, WEB/PPD/CCR format compliance, return handling and BSA/AML monitoring.

Side-by-side comparison

What international businesses actually need

Across all four rails, the recurring requirements for a non-domestic business are the same in shape and different in detail:

• A locally licensed partner authorized by the country's central bank or financial regulator.
• A KYB / corporate onboarding pack: incorporation documents, UBO information, sanctions attestations and, for regulated merchants, sector-specific licenses.
• Beneficiary-account validation for every payout (CPF/CNPJ + account, CLABE, cédula + account, routing + account).
• Sanctions and AML screening against local and international lists (OFAC, UN, national watchlists).
• A funding path — typically a USD wire into an omnibus account held by the licensed partner, FX to local currency, and payout in-country.
• Reconciliation via webhooks or SFTP files, plus reporting for local tax and central-bank obligations.

How Transamericas fits

Transamericas operates as the licensed infrastructure layer for cross-border flows between the United States and Latin America. We integrate directly with local Pix, SPEI, PSE and US ACH participants under our regulatory umbrella, run institutional FX across ten-plus corridors, and expose one API for onboarding, payouts, reconciliation and compliance — so international businesses can accept and disburse in local currency without standing up local entities in every market.

Frequently asked questions