The Trump administration said on July 18 that it will impose a 25% Section 301 tariff on most imports from Brazil starting July 22, and the move directly targets Pix, the instant payment system led by Brazil’s central bank.
According to CoinDesk, the US position is that Pix creates unfair competitive conditions for American payment companies including Visa and Mastercard because the system offers zero fees to individuals and caps charges for merchants. Pix now processes more transactions than credit cards in Brazil.
Section 301 tariff action centers on Pix
Section 301 is the US Trade Representative’s tool for handling what Washington defines as unfair foreign trade practices. In this case, the 25% tariff will apply to most Brazilian goods shipped to the United States, marking one of the heaviest recent trade clashes between the US and Brazil, which the report describes as the world’s 10th-largest economy.
Washington’s argument is that Pix, because it is run by Brazil’s central bank, has a built-in structural advantage that sidelines private US payment networks.
Brazil, by contrast, has framed Pix as a domestic financial inclusion success. Since its launch in 2020, the system has replaced a large share of card and cash payments and become a key part of the country’s banking infrastructure.
Dollar stablecoins account for about 90% of Brazil’s crypto trading
The dispute also carries a clear irony. While the US is pressuring Pix on trade-competition grounds, dollar-denominated stablecoins have already taken a dominant role in Brazil’s digital economy.
Data from Brazil’s tax authority shows that dollar stablecoins now account for about 90% of the country’s crypto trading volume, with most of that activity used for payments and settlement. In practical terms, the report says, the dollar has already secured a sizable transactional foothold in Brazil through blockchain-based rails.
That route is also being narrowed. Brazil’s central bank released Resolution 561 in May, and it will take effect on Oct. 1. The rule will prohibit payment institutions from using stablecoins or other crypto assets to settle cross-border payments.
That leaves Brazil defending Pix on one front while formally restricting stablecoin use in regulated payment channels on another.
Broader BRICS backdrop
The report ties the latest friction to a wider US concern over BRICS efforts to reduce reliance on dollar-denominated payment infrastructure.
Beyond Pix, China’s CIPS and Russia’s SPFS are also cited as attempts to build alternatives to SWIFT and dollar clearing. In that framing, the new 25% tariff action is presented as a concrete response by the Trump administration to the rise of non-dollar payment rails.