4 ms·

If anything, that's an argument in favour of the whole thing being government controlled -- it's clearly a natural monopoly with a large capital expenditure req

If anything, that's an argument in favour of the whole thing being government controlled -- it's clearly a natural monopoly with a large capital expenditure requirement and a comparatively minimal (as a percentage of transactions) ongoing charge required to continue to run it. I mean, it clearly doesn't cost Visa / MC any more to make a £/$/€45 000 payment than a £/$/€5 one – database writes are not cheaper or more expensive if the fixed point value you change is smaller or larger (subject to fitting within the range requirements, etc)...

kasey_junk 5y ago
You are forgetting about risk management which does change based on the fixed point value.
gtirloni 5y ago
Brazil has gone that route with PIX [0]. It's a fund transfer system with realtime confirmation. Many e-commerce stores accept it besides debit/credit, they can confirm the payment almost instantaneously and they usually give discounts if you use PIX instead of debit/credit (3-10%). Also, paying at stores, clinics, doctors, etc.. all done with PIX nowadays. Very few people are carrying cash these days. Very few clinics had a payment machine to accept debit/credit cards and now with PIX they have no incentive to do so anymore. To transfer funds, you can specify the user's ID (which can be a phone number, national tax identification or some random string the user creates). To pay for purchases, you usually scan a QR code or copy a payment string using your bank's app/website. It's very convenient. 0 - https://www.bcb.gov.br/en/financialstability/pix_en https://www.bcb.gov.br/en/financialstability/pix_en
- radiator 5y ago
  Interesting. Is having a brazilian bank account a prerequisite to use PIX?
toyg 5y ago
> If anything, that's an argument in favour of the whole thing being government controlled Absolutely, and I kinda expect this to become the case eventually across Europe, as the "cashless society" vision becomes inevitable. If you make it de-facto compulsory for citizens to operate electronically, it's only fair that there should be the sort of guarantees and accountability that only the State can provide, even if you lose a bit of innovation or efficiency.

kasey_junk 5y ago

You are forgetting about risk management which does change based on the fixed point value.

gtirloni 5y ago

Brazil has gone that route with PIX [0]. It's a fund transfer system with realtime confirmation. Many e-commerce stores accept it besides debit/credit, they can confirm the payment almost instantaneously and they usually give discounts if you use PIX instead of debit/credit (3-10%). Also, paying at stores, clinics, doctors, etc.. all done with PIX nowadays. Very few people are carrying cash these days. Very few clinics had a payment machine to accept debit/credit cards and now with PIX they have no incentive to do so anymore. To transfer funds, you can specify the user's ID (which can be a phone number, national tax identification or some random string the user creates). To pay for purchases, you usually scan a QR code or copy a payment string using your bank's app/website. It's very convenient. 0 - https://www.bcb.gov.br/en/financialstability/pix_en https://www.bcb.gov.br/en/financialstability/pix_en

radiator 5y ago
Interesting. Is having a brazilian bank account a prerequisite to use PIX?

toyg 5y ago

> If anything, that's an argument in favour of the whole thing being government controlled Absolutely, and I kinda expect this to become the case eventually across Europe, as the "cashless society" vision becomes inevitable. If you make it de-facto compulsory for citizens to operate electronically, it's only fair that there should be the sort of guarantees and accountability that only the State can provide, even if you lose a bit of innovation or efficiency.