The Central Bank of Colombia published a six-month operational update on Bre-B, Colombia’s interoperable instant payments system, reporting rapid user adoption and transaction growth alongside recent changes aimed at expanding merchant payments and improving user transparency during service disruptions. Since Bre-B began operating on 6 October 2025, it has recorded more than 670 million transactions with a total value above COP 105 trillion, and more than 34 million registered users (individuals and merchants) with over 103 million registered payment “keys”. The reported average transaction value is COP 156,711, with 39.3% of transactions between COP 10,000 and COP 50,000. Recent updates include interoperability of QR codes so merchants can receive real-time payments from hundreds of entities via a single QR image, and a new obligation on financial institutions to provide notifications or informative notices to users when transaction intermittencies occur, whether due to the system’s operation or specific entities. The central bank expects that in the second half of 2026 individuals will also be able to generate QR codes as an alternative to using keys. It also expects to publish a regulatory package mid-2026 to support business payments, including collections and dispersals to suppliers and payroll, among other use cases.
Central Bank of Colombia 2026-04-13
Central Bank of Colombia reports Bre-B reaches 34 million users and rolls out QR interoperability and outage notices
The Central Bank of Colombia published a six‑month operational update on Bre-B, reporting more than 670 million instant payment transactions worth over COP 105 trillion, 34 million registered users and over 103 million payment keys since launch. Recent enhancements include interoperable QR codes for merchant payments and new obligations on financial institutions to notify users of transaction intermittencies, with further QR functionality for individuals and a regulatory package to support business payments expected in 2026.