Guilherme Oliveira, Group Product Manager | Digital Payments Manager, Bradesco
Guilherme Oliveira is Banco Bradesco’s Group Product Manager and Digital Payments Manager. With nearly two decades of experience building technology platforms and digital ecosystems, he has led initiatives across payments, cloud, and financial services. His work focuses on transforming the customer experience through secure, simple, and innovative solutions that connect technology and human needs.
Through this article, Oliveira explores how tokenization is reshaping the payment landscape in Brazil and beyond. He highlights the enduring relevance of credit cards, the rise of invisible experiences, and how banks can move from competing on payment methods to creating integrated ecosystems where payments are secure, seamless, and strategic.
In recent years, the payments sector has transformed rapidly. The rise of Pix, the growth of digital wallets, and initiatives linked to crypto-assets have expanded options for consumers and businesses. Yet the latest market figures show that the credit card remains the backbone of Brazil’s payment ecosystem, thanks to its ability to adapt, integrate, and deliver seamless experiences.
Tokenization is not just a security layer—it is the engine behind seamless, invisible payments. Embedding trust and simplicity into every transaction transforms credit cards into the foundation of integrated digital ecosystems 
According to Abecs, in the first half of 2025, cards moved R$2.2 trillion—a 9.9 percent increase over the same period in 2024. Credit cards alone accounted for R$1.5 trillion, consolidating their position as the preferred method for Brazilians. This leadership is no accident—it rests on tokenization, a technology that secures sensitive data and enables increasingly invisible customer experiences.
Tokenization as the Experience Engine
Tokenization powers recurring subscriptions, one-click e-commerce purchases, and contactless “tap to pay” transactions. Protecting information and simplifying processes makes payments virtually invisible—customers simply move through their consumption journeys seamlessly.
International cases illustrate this trend. DBS Bank in Singapore offers a single app where customers can check balances, book trips, invest, and buy insurance. Payment is processed securely in the background, woven naturally into the experience. JPMorgan Chase has also built integrated platforms that connect payments, investments, and benefits in one hub.
This approach translates into automated reconciliation and integrated cash flow management for small and medium-sized businesses, which represent the majority in Brazil.
Open Finance plays a critical role in expanding this integration. Connecting data across institutions enables personalized credit, streamlined financial management, and innovative product combinations. Banks are evolving into open service platforms in this context, where cards and tokenization remain core infrastructure.
These examples demonstrate that the new reality for financial institutions is not just competing on payment methods, but creating ecosystems where payments are discreet, secure, and seamlessly embedded.
Pix as Complement, Not Competitor
Pix has undeniably gained ground, especially for transfers and low-value payments. However, uncertainties around installment options and responsibility in the payment chain keep credit a decisive factor for many consumers.
Features such as installment plans, rewards programs, recurrence, and exclusive benefits ensure credit cards remain highly relevant. Rather than competing directly, Pix and cards complement one another. And at the heart of credit cards, tokenization provides the reliable infrastructure on which new digital experiences are built.
The Shift to Invisible Payments
Abecs data reflects the migration toward invisible experiences. In the first half of 2025, proximity payments totaled R$883 billion, a 37.1percent increase, representing more than 71 percent of all in-person card transactions in Brazil. In e-commerce, online purchases reached R$537 billion, up 16.7 percent.
Across both channels, payments increasingly occur in the background—secure, fast, and tokenized.
The variety of options alone does not define the era of digital channels, but rather the ability to make payments part of a fluid, reliable experience. Far from becoming obsolete, the credit card is reinventing itself as the foundation of this movement: invisible, secure, and tokenized.
From Security Layer to Experience Enabler
Tokenization should be viewed as a security mechanism and an enabler of invisible journeys. By linking payment methods to non-financial services and prioritizing user experience, financial institutions can consolidate digital ecosystems where payments no longer create friction but integrate naturally.
In the near future, the true competitive differentiator will not be how customers pay, but the quality of the experience surrounding the payment.
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