As previously mentioned, systems that settle securities (except government securities and corporate bonds issued by banks) are subject to CVM authorization and supervision (CVM shares this responsibility with the Banco Central do Brasil). The Brazilian Association of Financial and Capital Market Entities - ANBIMA, which is a non-for-profit civil association that congregates the interests of open market institutions, supports the SELIC. The Interbank Payments Clearinghouse - CIP, which is a non-for-profit civil association, operates the SITRAF and the SILOC. The Banking Technology Corporation - TECBAN, a for-profit company, operates a shared ATM network ("Banco24Horas").
BM&FBOVESPA S.A., a for-profit company that has its headquarter in Sao Paulo, which is the main Brazilian stock, commodities and futures exchange, operates four settlement systems (stocks; government securities; derivatives; and FX transactions). Also regarding securities, it is important to mention CETIP, nowadays a for-profit company.
Regarding clearing of checks, Banco do Brasil S.A., a federal government bank, plays an important role, since it is responsible for operating COMPE (Centralizer for Clearing of Checks). An advisory group (COMPE Group), with participants from the Banco Central do Brasil, Banco do Brasil S.A. and many bank associations, is in charge of examining preliminarily proposals for improvement and other issues related to this area.
Due to the observed growing use of electronic payment instruments, the payment card companies have started to play a more important role in the payment system. The main of them are VISA, MasterCard, American Express and Hipercard.
ECT, the Brazilian post office, nowadays plays an important role in the Brazilian payment system, since, acting as “correspondente bancário”, it serves almost all the municipalities where there is no bank branch.
1 Typically, "correspondentes bancários" are postal offices, lottery houses, supermarkets, drugstores and other small retailers, which, acting on behalf of banks and under agreement, are authorized to receive payments, as well as, among other things, proposals related to sight, term and savings deposit accounts.