The median all-in cost of moving USD to BRL through a stablecoin rail fell to 0.38% in August, the first time our tracked median has sat below the 0.40% line since we started publishing it.
What actually changed
Three things, in order of impact. Local BRL liquidity deepened — two desks in São Paulo now quote continuously through the day rather than in windows, which removed the spread premium providers were paying to cover gaps. Second, direct PIX access spread from 14 providers to 22, cutting out a partner margin. Third, competition on the corridor is now genuine: 62 providers list coverage, and the top ten are within 12 basis points of each other.
The corridor is now priced like infrastructure, not like a trade.
Who passed it on
Not everyone. Of the 22 providers with direct PIX access, 16 lowered published pricing within the month; the rest held rates and widened margin. Buyers reporting transactions through our review flow put the real-world gap at roughly 8 basis points between published and effective pricing — worth checking before you sign an annual agreement.