Google will launch its payment system Android Pay in Brazil by the end of 2017, the company announced yesterday.
The company’s director of engineering for payment products Varouj Chitilian told delegates at Google’s I/O 2017 event taking place this week that “the momentum and the traction is just incredible” for the company’s contactless payment offering.
“I’m personally very excited about Brazil because it will be our first Latin American country,” Chitilian said.
The initial pool of Brazilian partners will comprise of local banks Banco do Brasil, Bradesco, Itaú and Caixa, as well as local insurance firm Porto Seguro and credit card firms MasterCard, Visa and Elo.
The latest mobile payment scheme launched in Brazil was Samsung Pay, which was introduced just before the Rio Olympic Games.
The first contactless payment solutions for individuals debuted in the country in 2013. Currently, almost two million point-of-sale (POS) terminals in Brazil are ready to handle contactless payments, according to data from state-owned banking institution Banco do Brasil.
Android Pay is currently available in 10 markets globally including the US, UK, Singapore, Australia, Hong Kong, Poland, New Zealand, Republic of Ireland, Japan and Belgium.
