Independent BC with a budget is important, says CEO of Bemobi
The CEO of Bemobi, Pedro Ripper defends the independence of the Central Bank when commenting on PEC (Proposed Amendment to the Constitution) 65. The text provides financial and budgetary autonomy to the monetary authority and is being processed in the Senate.
"An independent BC with a budget for innovation is important", he says.
He criticizes, however, the section that deals with the constitutionalization of Pix in the BC PEC. "The politicization of Pix is not appropriate", he says, in an interview with Capital Insights, a Broadcast program with CNN Money.
According to Ripper, "Pix is a new payments trail". The creation of this new trail "generates geopolitical tension", he states, when commenting on the offensive by the United States, for whom the instrument blocks competition from American companies.
Although the US threatens to tax Brazilian imports, under the argument of alleged unfair practices - including the case of Pix -, the executive rules out the possibility of Brazil restricting the payment method.
The executive highlights that the Central Bank "has promoted a lot of innovation in the last 10 years". And that "Brazil is sophisticated in the financial area", when evaluating the country's superiority in this segment. So much so that Mexico and Colombia are already going to use the Brazilian model.
In the domestic macro scenario, Ripper observes that "any company has a negative impact with high interest rates", when commenting on the costs imposed by high rates. Regarding Bemobi's recent trajectory, he recalls that "we have made 7 acquisitions since the IPO in 2021" and highlights that growth was achieved without taking on debt.
According to the CEO, "our acquisitions are mainly technological" and Bemobi's "role is to build payment solutions for customers", working with existing means. "Our role is to add value to shareholders", he states.
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When addressing the global scenario and technology, Ripper assesses that "we are experiencing the greatest technological transformation ever" with artificial intelligence, which increases uncertainties. For him, "we're going to have to live with volatility" and, despite the changes, he doesn't believe in the end of software companies.
Ripper also says that "we are in a more deglobalized environment" and that, in this context, "Brazil is a reasonably good option" in the global flow of resources. In the AI agenda, he considers that the technology "has incredible benefits and real risks" and that "Brazil has an opportunity to attract investment", but highlights that "research and development is a game between the USA and China", considering it naive to think that the country will enter into AI R&D. Still, he states: "I'm optimistic because Brazil is more entrepreneurial now."
Ripper concludes that, "in the world of technology, timing is very important" and "AI has more opportunities than threats."
Source: CNN