Box 4: Characteristics of the New Bre-B Instant Payments System - Report of the Board of Directors to the Congress of Colombia, February 2025
Pursuant to Article 5 of Law 31 of 1992, the Board of Directors of Banco de la República (the Central Bank of Colombia) submits a report to the Honorable Congress of Colombia, informing about the performance of the economy and its outlook. This report is submitted twice a year, in March and July, within ten business days following the start date of the sessions of the Congress.
The year 2025 will be a key for the payments industry with the launch of Bre-B, the new interoperable instant payments system developed by Banco de la República in collaboration with the fnancial industry since 2022. This system will allow real-time transfers with crediting of funds across all fnancial system accounts, at any time and on any day of the week, and at low cost.
The arrival of Bre-B seeks to facilitate the broader use of electronic payments by individuals and businesses, offering greater efficiency and security compared to cash payments. It also aims to build credit histories that can then serve to accelerate fnancial inclusion for the population. Additionally, the ecosystem represents an opportunity to increase competition and innovation in the payments industry, which will strengthen payment services in the economy.
According to the World Bank, there are more than one hundred instant payments systems operating globally. In Colombia, despite market efforts, progress has been concentrated in closed payment models, which prioritize intrabank transfers over interbank transfers. In addition to the lack of interoperability, barriers persist in access to payment systems by new agents, who could boost competition and foster fnancial inclusion, for example, by introducing new technologies and business models, especially in key areas, such as the adoption by small businesses. While some of these barriers have begun to be rever-sed, there is still room for instant electronic payments to reduce the use of cash, which remains high and still represents 79% of daily transactions. For this reason, based on the conclusions of the Payments Systems Forum in 2022, Banco de la República launched the Interoperable Instant Payments project, based on the progress made by the private sector, and motivated by the need to converge toward the principles of interoperability, access, and innovation.