Brazil's central bank delays launch of new feature in popular payment system

BRASILIA (Reuters) - Brazil's central bank said on Monday a new feature for its popular Pix instant payment system aimed at automatically paying recurring bills will be launched next June instead of this October, as had been originally scheduled.

The delay follows repeated calls from the Brazilian central bank's governor, Roberto Campos Neto, for the approval of a constitutional amendment granting financial autonomy to the institution.

Campos Neto argues that given the central bank's current budgetary situation, there may come a time when policymakers face difficulties in operating Pix.

A senate committee last week decided to postpone the vote on the financial autonomy proposal, which Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva opposes.

The so-called "Pix Automatic" feature will allow automatic periodic debits, without the need for authentication for each transaction.

It is expected that, following its meteoric rise in replacing traditionally established payment methods in Brazil, Pix will move into the territory of credit cards and bank invoices.

In a statement, the central bank said the new feature would enable recipients such as public utilities, schools, health plans, streaming services, subscription clubs, and financial sector companies to incur lower billing procedure costs and experience reduced delinquency.

(Reporting by Marcela Ayres; Editing by Paul Simao)