Ant International Wins Payment Institution Licence from Brazil's Central Bank

Ant International, the Singapore-based payments arm of Jack Ma's Ant Group, has received a Payment Institution licence from Brazil's central bank.

The authorisation allows the company to broaden its payment and account service offerings in one of Latin America's largest digital payment markets.

The new licence enhances capabilities Ant International already provides through Antom, its merchant payment and digitalisation platform operating in Brazil.

Antom currently supports Brazilian merchants in accepting PIX instant payments, credit cards, and alternative payment methods. The company says the licence will bolster both domestic and cross-border payment infrastructure in the country.

Rodrigo Reif, general manager of Ant International Brazil, welcomed the regulatory milestone.

With the Central Bank's invaluable support, we are ready to step up more reliable and comprehensive global payment and account services to enterprises, platforms and SMEs in the country's dynamic digital economy, in ever deeper collaboration with its highly developed payments ecosystem and financial services industry.

Ant International delivers cross-border payments, embedded credit, treasury services, and finAI and blockchain solutions to clients spanning Asia, Europe, and the Americas. The firm processes over 20 million transactions daily.

The Brazilian licence arrives months after Ant International closed a $1.2bn Series A financing round in July, with proceeds earmarked for international expansion.

Earlier this year, Ant International's Alipay+ wallet network integrated with Argentina's national QR payment scheme, Transferencias 3.0, through a collaboration with fintech provider PVS.

That partnership enables travellers to make QR code payments at merchants across Argentina using their home-country wallets.