Bre-B is the nationwide instant-payment system run by Banco de la República, and it moves Colombian pesos between participating banks and digital wallets within 20 seconds. At Colombia Desk, our concierge works for foreigners moving to Medellín or Bogotá, and landlords and small businesses there increasingly ask to be paid to a llave. To receive money, you link an identifier called a llave (your mobile number, identity document number, email, or an alphanumeric tag) to your Colombian bank account or digital wallet.
The system operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and transfers are free for end users. The central bank sets a general cap of 1,000 UVB (Unidad de Valor Básico), which equals COP 12,110,000 in 2026, though individual financial institutions often set lower transaction limits.
What Bre-B Is and How a Llave Works
Bre-B is the national instant-payment system created and managed by Banco de la República, the central bank of Colombia. Formally known as the Sistema de Pagos Inmediatos interoperable, it connects commercial banks, financial cooperatives, and digital deposit accounts across the country. Following an initial registration phase that opened on July 14, 2025, mass operations launched nationwide on Monday, October 6, 2025, as reported by Noticias RCN. Money moves between different banks and wallets within 20 seconds in 99.5% of operations. The system runs 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
For a foreigner, a llave means rent or a cleaner’s fee goes from your app to their bank in one step, with no account number to copy and no wait for the next ACH cycle. About 245 banks, cooperatives and wallets take part, according to Banco de la República. In the first year, more than 1.7 billion transfers moved over COP 262.5 trillion, and users registered more than 116 million llaves.
At the core of the system is the “llave”, a unique identifier that replaces the need to share a bank name, account type, and account number. As documented by Portafolio, personal users can register four distinct types of llaves:
- Mobile number: A 10-digit Colombian mobile phone number.
- Identity document: Your national identity card number, such as a Cédula de Extranjería (CE).
- Email address: A personal email address linked to your digital banking profile.
- Alphanumeric identifier: A custom username, often formatted with an ”@” symbol depending on the application.
Each llave connects to one account at a time, though one account can hold several llaves (your mobile number and your email can both point to the same savings account). A llave cannot be active at two institutions at once. If your mobile number is a llave at Bancolombia, you must cancel it there before Nequi will accept it.
You need a registered llave to receive money but not to send it, according to Asuntos Legales, which summarizes Banco de la República’s Resolución Externa 6 de 2023 and Circular Reglamentaria Externa DSP-465. Furthermore, unlike older peer-to-peer mechanisms, recipients do not need to accept incoming transfers manually. Funds deposit automatically into the destination balance once the transaction processes.
How to Register a Llave in Your App
Registering a llave takes place directly inside your Colombian bank or digital wallet application. The registration process is entirely optional, carries no deadline, and is completely free of charge. In Nequi you can modify, cancel, temporarily block or reactivate a llave at any time; other banks do not publish the same list. You need a Colombian bank account or wallet before you can register anything, and our guide to Nequi for foreigners covers opening one.
Different institutions support different document types for identity-based llaves. The following table shows how Bancolombia, Nequi and DaviPlata handle foreign ID documents:
| Institution | Accepted Document Types for Llaves | Digital/Alphanumeric Format | Supported Wallet Platforms |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bancolombia | Cédula de Ciudadanía, Cédula de Extranjería, NUIP, NIT, Pasaporte | Llave Bancolombia (custom format) | Mi Bancolombia App |
| Nequi | Cédula de Ciudadanía, Cédula de Extranjería | @ username suggested by Nequi (5 to 20 characters) | Nequi Android / iOS |
| DaviPlata | Cédula de Ciudadanía, Cédula de Extranjería, Pasaporte, Tarjeta de Identidad | @Plata followed by your mobile number | DaviPlata App |
The DaviPlata row comes from La República press coverage (July 2025) and the Bancolombia row from a Bancolombia blog page, so confirm the document list in the app’s llave menu before you rely on a passport.
Foreign residents holding a valid Cédula de Extranjería can register their document number at all three. However, credential policies differ when using alternative documents. As outlined in Nequi’s Bre-B documentation, Nequi permits only a Cédula de Ciudadanía (CC) or Cédula de Extranjería as a document llave. Temporary protection permits, known as the Permiso por Protección Temporal (PPT), cannot be used as a document llave on Nequi, though PPT holders may still register their mobile number or email address as alternate llaves. Furthermore, Nequi does not list foreign passports as an accepted registration document. In contrast, Bancolombia’s educational portal and reporting on DaviPlata by La República indicate that both institutions allow passport holders to register passport-based document llaves within their respective systems.
To complete the setup process, follow the specific menu options inside each primary banking application:
- Mi Bancolombia: Open the application, select “Bre-B Tus llaves” from the main menu, proceed to “Personas”, and choose “Registrar llaves”. Select the deposit account you wish to link, pick the type of identifier you want to register, review the data authorization terms, and confirm the registration.
- Nequi: Log in to the application and tap “Bre-B” then “Registrar”, select the llave type you want, accept the terms and data authorization, and finish.
- DaviPlata: Navigate to “Mis Llaves (Bre-B)” within the app dashboard. Choose the identifiers you wish to link from the available options, accept the operating terms, and save your preferences.
How to Send a Transfer with a Llave
Sending money using Bre-B does not require you to know the recipient’s bank name or account details. The transaction routes entirely through the identifier you enter.
In the Mi Bancolombia application, the workflow follows a direct sequence:
- Tap “Bre-B Tus llaves” and log in.
- Select “Transferir plata” and choose the option labeled “Transferir con llaves”.
- Enter the monetary amount in Colombian pesos.
- Select the category of llave used by your recipient (mobile phone number, document, email, or alphanumeric llave) and enter the exact details.
- Review the confirmation screen. The interface will display the recipient’s registered name before you confirm.
- Confirm the transaction to dispatch the payment.
Check the name on the confirmation screen before you tap confirm. The money lands in the recipient’s account within 20 seconds without them accepting it, and Banco de la República has published no reversal process for a wrong llave.
Limits and Costs
Transfers through Bre-B carry no transaction fees for ordinary consumers. Banco de la República charges banks nothing for the settlement module and information depository for the first three years, then COP 6.46 per transaction from year four, according to Asuntos Legales. Noticias Caracol reports that the banks, not users, will carry that charge.
System-wide transaction limits are anchored to the Unidad de Valor Básico (UVB). Under Circular Reglamentaria Externa DSP-465, Banco de la República capped individual transactions at 1,000 UVB. Under Ministerio de Hacienda Resolución 3488 de 2025 (Cerlatam), the value of 1 UVB for 2026 is fixed at COP 12,110. Consequently, the national maximum limit per transaction is COP 12,110,000 in 2026, an increase from COP 11,552,000 in 2025.
Banks and wallets may set limits below the Banrep cap, according to Noticias Caracol:
- Nequi: COP 3,000,000 per Bre-B transfer, according to Nequi’s Bre-B page as of October 2026.
- DaviPlata: Bre-B transfers cost $0, with no limit on how many you send and a COP 3,000,000 maximum each, according to DaviPlata’s fees and limits page (updated June 2026).
- Commercial Banks: May establish lower per-operation amounts or daily count limits.
In October 2026, as reported by Portafolio, Banco de la República put out a draft for comment that would allow instant payments above the 1,000 UVB cap. The aim is to keep larger transfers off the slower ACH cycles. However, central bank authorities have not finalized any revised ceiling figure or implementation schedule, leaving the 1,000 UVB cap in full effect.
Bre-B transfers also count toward the 4x1000 tax (Gravamen a los Movimientos Financieros), and our guide on sending money from Colombia to the USA explains the exemptions.
Paying a Shop with a QR or Business Code
Commercial establishments across Colombia use quick response (QR) codes and merchant identifiers to collect payments via Bre-B. Central bank operating data reveals that 37% of all Bre-B transactions completed during its first year of operation were initiated using QR codes.
Businesses participating in the system receive a dedicated business llave, known as a “código de negocio”. At Bancolombia and Nequi Negocios the code has 10 digits and starts with 00. At Bancolombia, each point of sale gets its own code and QR.
To make an in-store payment:
- Open your bank or wallet app and launch the integrated camera scanner.
- Scan the merchant’s printed or digital Bre-B QR display.
- Input the total peso balance shown on your retail receipt, check the details, and authorize payment.
- The payment settles within 20 seconds.
Bre-B vs Transfiya and Ordinary Bank Transfers
Transfiya, built by ACH Colombia, handled interbank mobile transfers before Bre-B. Its transfer button disappeared from bank apps on October 5, 2025, and Bre-B took over interbank instant transfers on October 6, according to La Kalle.
According to ACH Colombia, as reported by Valora Analitik in October 2025, Transfiya continues in more than 20 institutions for requesting money; its status since then has not been re-confirmed. Nequi, for example, still offers “Pide” then “Por Transfiya” for requesting money and business collections, while outgoing payments go through Bre-B.
Ordinary interbank transfers through ACH (Automated Clearing House) run in batches on business days only. The following comparison illustrates the functional differences:
| Feature | Bre-B | Transfiya (Current Role) | Traditional ACH Transfer |
|---|---|---|---|
| Operating Hours | 24/7, every day of the year | Not published | Business days only, specific batch windows |
| Transfer Speed | Under 20 seconds | Not published | 1 to 2 business days depending on cut-off cycles |
| Required Details | A single registered llave or QR code | Not published | Bank name, account type, and account number |
| Account Enrollment | Not required | Not published | Often required before sending funds |
| User Transfer Fee | Free ($0) | Not published | Not published |
| Standard Transaction Cap | 1,000 UVB (COP 12,110,000 in 2026) | Not published (DaviPlata: 15 free transfers, COP 5,000,000 a day) | Not published |
Traditional ACH batch schedules depend on operating windows coordinated by ACH Colombia. In Bancolombia’s standard ACH cycle, transfers initiated after 5:30 p.m., or submitted during weekends and national holidays, are applied by 1:00 p.m. on the next business day. Similarly, documentation from BBVA Colombia notes that standard interbank ACH transfers can take up to 1 to 2 business days to clear. Bancolombia-to-Bancolombia transfers arrive immediately, according to Bancolombia.
What Bre-B Can’t Do
Bre-B moves pesos only between accounts inside Colombia.
Noticias RCN reports no start date for international payments: ACI Worldwide says the technology is ready, but bank connections and Banrep and Superfinanciera rules are still pending.
Money from abroad reaches a llave only through a remittance provider. Western Union’s Spain site, for example, offers delivery to an active Bre-B llave at a Colombian bank or wallet, and a payment sent to the wrong llave may not be recoverable.
Bre-B is not an online e-commerce payment checkout gateway like PSE (Pagos Seguros en Línea). To understand how digital checkouts differ, review our guide on PSE in Colombia.
Payroll, supplier payments and business collections are not on Bre-B yet. Ana María Prieto, who directs Banco de la República’s payment systems department, told Portafolio the bank expects to issue those rules before the end of 2026, with the features reaching bank apps during 2027.
Avoiding Bre-B Scams
In October 2026, Kaspersky tracked more than ten fake web domains in a phishing campaign that uses the Bre-B name, as reported by Noticias RCN.
To safeguard your Colombian accounts, adhere to explicit guidance issued by Banco de la República and major commercial institutions:
- No standalone app exists: Banco de la República does not operate an independent consumer smartphone application or public social media profile for Bre-B. Any application in app stores claiming to be the official “Bre-B App” is fraudulent. Manage your llaves only inside your own bank or wallet app.
- Registration is always free: Registering a llave is free. Any communication requesting a fee to register or validate an identifier is an attempted fraud.
- No external links are needed to accept funds: Incoming Bre-B transfers credit automatically to your linked deposit balance. You never need to tap a web link, input an SMS verification code, or sign into an external site to “release” or “accept” incoming money.
- Nequi does not call about llaves: Nequi’s Bre-B page says Nequi will not call you to help register a llave, send you links, charge you, or block your account if you skip registering.
If you have not established a local financial account in Colombia, setting up a digital wallet or bank account is your starting point. You can review requirements in our complete guide to Nequi for foreigners or explore broader retail banking options in our guide on how to open a bank account in Colombia. To compare all available payment tools, read our overview on how to pay in Colombia. If you want help setting up your bank account, wallet and paperwork as you move, contact Colombia Desk about our relocation concierge.