PagSeguro Digital Ltd. [PAGS] Filings

20-F 1 pags-20221231.htm 20-F pags-20221231

UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549

FORM 20-F

ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d)
OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022

Commission File Number 1-38353

PAGSEGURO DIGITAL LTD.
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

The Cayman Islands
(Jurisdiction of incorporation or organization)

Conyers Trust Company (Cayman) Limited,
Cricket Square, Hutchins Drive, P.O. Box 2681,
Grand Cayman, KY1-1111, Cayman Islands
(Registered office address)

Artur Gaulke Schunck
+55-11-3914-9524– ir@pagseguro.com
Av. Brigadeiro Faria Lima, 1384, 4º andar, parte A
São Paulo, SP, 01451-001, Brazil
(Name, telephone, e-mail and/or facsimile
number and address of company contact person)

Copies to:
David Flechner
Allen & Overy LLP
1221 Avenue of the Americas
New York | NY 10020
Phone: (212) 610 6300 | Fax: (212) 610 6399

Securities registered or to be registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

Title of each class:

Trading Symbol(s):

Name of each exchange on which registered:

Class A common shares, par value US$0.000025

PAGS

New York Stock Exchange

Securities registered or to be registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act: None

Securities for which there is a reporting obligation pursuant to Section 15(d) of the Act: None

As of December 31, 2022 there were 209,148,718 Class A common shares (including treasury shares), par value of US$0.000025 per share, and 120,459,508 Class B common shares, par value of US$0.000025 per share, outstanding.

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act.

Yes ☑ No ☐

If this report is an annual or transition report, indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or 15 (d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.

Yes ☐ No ☑

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days.

Yes ☑ No ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit such files).

Yes ☑ No ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, or a non-accelerated filer, or an emerging growth company. See definition of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act:

Large Accelerated Filer ☑ Accelerated Filer ☐ Non-accelerated Filer ☐ Emerging growth company ☐

If an emerging growth company that prepares its financial statements in accordance with U.S. GAAP, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐

† The term “new or revised financial accounting standard” refers to any update issued by the Financial Accounting Standards Board to its Accounting Standards Codification after April 5, 2012.

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has filed a report on and attestation to its management’s assessment of the effectiveness of its internal control over financial reporting under Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (15 U.S.C. 7262(b)) by the registered public accounting firm that prepared or issued its audit report. ☑

If securities are registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act, indicate by check mark whether the financial statements of the registrant included in the filing reflect the correction of an error to previously issued financial statements. ☐

Indicate by check mark whether any of those error corrections are restatements that required a recovery analysis of incentive-based compensation received by any of the registrant’s executive officers during the relevant recovery period pursuant to §240.10D-1(b). ☐

Indicate by check mark which basis of accounting the registrant has used to prepare the financial statements included in this filing:

U.S. GAAP ☐ International Financial Reporting Standards as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board ☑ Other ☐

If “Other” has been checked in response to the previous question, indicate by check mark which financial statement item the registrant has elected to follow.

Item 17 ☐ Item 18 ☐

If this is an annual report, indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act).

Yes ☐ No ☑

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			Page
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS			1
CERTAIN TERMS AND CONVENTIONS			2
PRESENTATION OF FINANCIAL AND OTHER INFORMATION			2
Item 1. IDENTITY OF DIRECTORS, SENIOR MANAGEMENT AND ADVISERS			5
Item 2. OFFER STATISTICS AND EXPECTED TIMETABLE			5
Item 3. KEY INFORMATION			5
Item 4. INFORMATION ON THE COMPANY			43
Item 4A. UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS			93
Item 5. OPERATING AND FINANCIAL REVIEW AND PROSPECTS			94
Item 6. DIRECTORS, SENIOR MANAGEMENT AND EMPLOYEES			116
Item 7. MAJOR SHAREHOLDERS AND RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS			123
Item 8. FINANCIAL INFORMATION			127
Item 9. THE OFFER AND LISTING			129
Item 10. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION			130
Item 11. QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISK			150
Item 12. DESCRIPTION OF SECURITIES OTHER THAN EQUITY SECURITIES			151
Item 13. DEFAULTS, DIVIDEND ARREARAGES AND DELINQUENCIES			151
Item 14. MATERIAL MODIFICATIONS TO THE RIGHTS OF SECURITY HOLDERS AND USE OF PROCEEDS			152
Item 15. CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES			152
Item 16. RESERVED			153
Item 16A. AUDIT COMMITTEE FINANCIAL EXPERT			153
Item 16B. CODE OF ETHICS			154
Item 16C. PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTANT FEES AND SERVICES			154
Item 16D. EXEMPTIONS FROM THE LISTING STANDARDS FOR AUDIT COMMITTEES			154
Item 16E. PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES BY THE ISSUER AND AFFILIATED PURCHASERS			154
Item 16F. CHANGE IN REGISTRANT’S CERTIFYING ACCOUNTANT			155
Item 16G. CORPORATE GOVERNANCE			155
Item 16H. MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURE			156
Item 17. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS			156
Item 18. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS			156
Item 19. EXHIBITS			157
GLOSSARY OF TERMS			162
SIGNATURES			165

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FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This annual report contains information that constitutes forward-looking statements within the meaning of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. In addition, from time to time we or our representatives have made or may make forward-looking statements orally or in writing. Furthermore, such forward-looking statements may be included in various filings that we make with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, or the SEC, or press releases or oral statements made by or with the approval of one of our authorized executive officers. These forward-looking statements are subject to certain known and unknown risks and uncertainties, as well as assumptions that could cause actual results to differ materially from those reflected in these forward-looking statements.

This annual report includes estimates and forward-looking statements, principally under the captions “Item 3. Key Information—Risk Factors, “Item 4. Information on the Company,” and “Item 5. Operating and Financial Review and Prospects.”

These estimates and forward-looking statements are based mainly on our current expectations and estimates of future events and trends that affect or may affect our business, financial condition, results of operations, cash flow, liquidity, prospects and the trading price of our Class A common shares. Although we believe that these estimates and forward-looking statements are based upon reasonable assumptions, they are subject to many significant risks, uncertainties and assumptions and are made in light of information currently available to us.

These statements appear throughout this annual report and include statements regarding our intent, belief or current expectations in connection with:

•the inherent risks related to the digital payments market, such as the interruption, failure or cybersecurity related incident involving our computer or information technology systems;

•our ability to innovate and respond to technological advances and changing customer demands;

•the maintenance of tax incentives;

•our ability to attract and retain qualified personnel;

•general economic, political and business conditions in Brazil, particularly in the geographic markets we serve as well as any other countries we may serve in the future and their impact on our business, notably with respect to inflation;

•labor disputes, employee strikes and other labor-related disruptions, including in connection with negotiations with unions;

•management’s expectations and estimates concerning our future financial performance and financing plans and programs;

•our interest rates and our level of debt and other fixed obligations;

•inflation, appreciation, depreciation and devaluation of the real;

•expenses, ability to generate cash flow, and ability to achieve, and maintain, future profitability;

•our ability to anticipate market needs and develop and introduce new and enhanced products and service functionality to adapt to changes in our industry;

•our anticipated growth and growth strategies and our ability to effectively manage that growth;

•the impact of increased competition in our market, innovation by our competitors, and our ability to compete effectively;

•our ability to successfully enter new markets and manage our expansion;

•our ability to further penetrate our existing client base to grow our ecosystem;

•our expectations concerning relationships with third parties and key suppliers;

•our ability to maintain, protect and enhance our brand and intellectual property;

•the sufficiency of our cash and cash equivalents and cash generated from operations to meet our working capital and capital expenditure requirements;

•our compliance with applicable regulatory and legislative developments and regulations and legislation that currently apply or become applicable to our business;

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•the economic, financial, political and social effects of the COVID-19 pandemic or other pandemics, epidemics and similar crises, particularly in Brazil, and the extent to which they continue to cause serious negative macroeconomic effects, thus enhancing the risks described under “Item 3. Key Information—D. Risk Factors;”

•developments and the perception of risks in Brazil in connection with ongoing corruption and other investigations and uncertainties related to the ability of the newly elected government to continue promoting economic and financial reforms in the country, including protests and riots as a result of the general election held in October 2022 in which the current president Mr. Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, or Mr. Lula da Silva, narrowly won over the former president Jair Bolsonaro, as well as policies and potential changes to address these matters or otherwise, including economic and fiscal reforms, any of which may negatively affect growth prospects in the Brazilian economy as a whole;

•the impact of the ongoing war in Ukraine and the economic sanctions imposed on Russia, and the resulting volatility and consequences for the global economy, which remain highly uncertain and difficult to predict;

•other factors that may affect our financial condition, liquidity and results of operations; and

•other risk factors discussed under “Item 3. Key Information—Risk Factors.”

The words “believe,” “understand,” “may,” “will,” “aim,” “estimate,” “continue,” “anticipate,” “seek,” “intend,” “expect,” “should,” “could,” “forecast” and similar words are intended to identify forward-looking statements. You should not place undue reliance on such statements, which speak only as of the date they were made. We do not undertake any obligation to update publicly or to revise any forward-looking statements after we file this annual report because of new information, future events or other factors. Our independent public auditors have neither examined nor compiled the forward-looking statements and, accordingly, do not provide any assurance with respect to such statements. In light of the risks and uncertainties described above, the future events and circumstances discussed in this annual report might not occur and are not guarantees of future performance. Because of these uncertainties, you should not make any investment decision based upon these estimates and forward-looking statements.

CERTAIN TERMS AND CONVENTIONS

For a glossary of industry and other defined terms included in this annual report, see “Glossary of Terms” included elsewhere in this annual report.

PRESENTATION OF FINANCIAL AND OTHER INFORMATION

The following references in this annual report have the meanings shown below:

•“PagSeguro Digital” or the “Company” mean PagSeguro Digital Ltd., an exempted company with limited liability incorporated under the laws of the Cayman Islands.

•“PagSeguro Brazil” means PagSeguro Internet Instituição de Pagamento S.A., our primary operating company, a sociedade por ações incorporated in Brazil. PagSeguro Brazil is substantially wholly-owned by PagSeguro Digital Ltd.

•“PagBank Holding” or “PagBank Participações” means PagBank Participações Ltda., a holding company incorporated in Brazil, which is wholly owned by PagSeg Participações Ltda., or PagSeg, which in turn is wholly owned by PagSeguro Digital.

•“We,” “us” or “our” means PagSeguro Digital, PagSeguro Brazil and their respective subsidiaries on a consolidated basis.

•“PagSeguro” means our digital payments business, which is operated by PagSeguro Brazil.

•“UOL” means Universo Online S.A., the controlling shareholder of PagSeguro Digital. For more information regarding UOL, see “Item 7. Major Shareholders and Related Party Transactions.”

•“PagSeguro Group” means PagSeguro Digital, together with its subsidiaries;

•“Group” means PagSeguro Group and UOL, together with its subsidiaries.

•“Brazilian government” means the federal government of Brazil.

•All references to the “Companies Act” are to the Cayman Islands Companies Act (As Revised) as the same may be amended from time to time, unless the context otherwise requires.

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•All references to the “Memorandum of Association” “Articles of Association” and “Memorandum and Articles of Association” of the Company are references to the current amended and restated memorandum and articles of association of the Company, as the same may be amended in accordance with the Companies Act from time to time.

The term “Brazil” refers to the Federative Republic of Brazil. “Central Bank” refers to Banco Central do Brasil. References in this annual report to “real,” “reais” or “R$” refer to the Brazilian real, the official currency of Brazil and references to “U.S. dollar,” “U.S. dollars” or “US$” refer to U.S. dollars, the official currency of the United States.

This annual report contains various illustrations of our products and services. For convenience, we have translated the text in those illustrations into English. The actual products and services are generally presented to our customers in Portuguese only.

Effect of Rounding

Certain amounts and percentages included in this annual report, including in the section of this annual report entitled “Item 5. Operating and Financial Review and Prospects” have been rounded for ease of presentation. Percentage figures included in this annual report have not been calculated in all cases on the basis of the rounded figures but on the basis of the original amounts prior to rounding. For this reason, certain percentage amounts in this annual report may vary from those obtained by performing the same calculations using the figures in our audited consolidated financial statements. Certain other amounts that appear in this annual report may not sum due to rounding.

Market and Industry Data

This annual report contains data related to economic conditions in the market in which we operate. The information contained in this annual report concerning economic conditions is based on publicly available information from third-party sources that we believe to be reasonable. Data and statistics regarding the Brazilian internet, payment solutions, e-commerce markets and socioeconomic indicators, are based on publicly available data published by the Brazilian Association of Credit Card and Services Companies (Associação Brasileira de Empresas de Cartões de Crédito e Serviços, or ABECS); the Brazilian Bank Federation (Federação Brasileira de Bancos, or Febraban); the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística, or IBGE); the Central Bank of Brazil (BCB); the Brazilian Association of Financial and Capital Markets Entities (ANBIMA); the Getulio Vargas Foundation (FGV); the Brazilian Service of Support for Micro and Small Enterprises (SEBRAE); the World Bank (WB); the International Monetary Fund (IMF); the Bank of International Settlements (BIS); the Insider Intelligence eMarketer; and Comscore, a cross-platform measurement company that measures audiences, brands and consumer behavior, and provides market and analytical data to clients, among others. We also make statements in this annual report about our competitive position and the size of the Brazilian digital payments and e-commerce markets.

Although we have no reason to believe any of this information or these reports are inaccurate in any material respect and believe and act as if they are reliable, neither we nor our agents have independently verified it. Governmental publications and other market sources, including those referred to above, generally state that their information was obtained from recognized and reliable sources, but the accuracy and completeness of that information is not guaranteed. In addition, the data that we compile internally, and our estimates have not been verified by an independent source. Except as disclosed in this annual report, none of the publications, reports or other published industry sources referred to in this annual report were commissioned by us or prepared at our request. Except as disclosed in this annual report, we have not sought or obtained the consent of any of these sources to include such market data in this annual report.

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Data Protection – Privacy Notice

Scope

The legal basis for this notification is to meet the standards required in respect of, and ensure compliance with, the requirements of the Cayman Islands’ Data Protection Act (As Revised), or the DPA, which came into effect in the Cayman Islands on September 30, 2019. This privacy notice puts investors in our Class A common shares on notice that through your investment in our Class A common shares, you will provide us with certain personal information which constitutes personal data within the meaning of the personal data, or DPA. We collect, use, disclose, retain and secure personal data to the extent reasonably required only and within the parameters that could be reasonably expected during the normal course of business. We will only process, disclose, transfer, or retain personal data to the extent legitimately required to conduct our activities on an ongoing basis or to comply with legal and regulatory obligations to which we are subject. We will only transfer personal data in accordance with the requirements of the DPA and will apply appropriate technical and organizational information security measures designed to protect against unauthorized or unlawful processing of the personal data and against the accidental loss, destruction or damage to the personal data. In our use of this personal data, we will be characterized as a “data controller” for the purposes of the DPA, while our affiliates and service providers who may receive this personal data from us in the conduct of our activities may either act as our “data processors” for the purposes of the DPA or may process personal information for their own lawful purposes in connection with services provided to us.

If you are a natural person, this will affect you directly. If you are a corporate investor (including, for these purposes, legal arrangements such as trusts or exempted limited partnerships) that provides us with personal data on individuals connected to you for any reason in relation to your investment in our Class A common shares, this will be relevant for those individuals and you should inform such individuals of the content.

What rights do individuals have in respect of personal data ?

Under the DPA, individuals must be informed of the purposes for which their personal data is processed, and this privacy notice fulfills our obligation in this respect.

Individuals have rights under the DPA in certain circumstances. These may include the right to request access to their personal data, the right to request rectification or correction of personal data, processing of personal data be stopped or restricted and the right to require that the Company cease processing personal data for direct marketing purposes. If you consider that your personal data has not been handled correctly, or you are not satisfied with our responses to any requests you have made regarding the use of your personal data, you have the right to complain to the Cayman Islands’ Ombudsman. The Ombudsman can be contacted by calling: +1-345-946-6283 or by email at info@ombudsman.ky.

Contacting PagSeguro Digital

For further information on the collection, use, disclosure, transfer or processing of your personal data or the exercise of any of the rights listed above, please contact our investor relations office at +55 (11) 3914-9524.

Certain Anti-Money Laundering Matters

In order to comply with legislation or regulations aimed at the prevention of money laundering, namely the Proceeds of Crime Act (As Revised), the Anti-Money Laundering Regulations (As Revised) and the Guidance Notes on the Prevention and Detection of Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Proliferation Financing in the Cayman Islands, or the Cayman AML Regime, the Company may be required to adopt and maintain anti-money laundering procedures, and may require subscribers to provide evidence to verify their identity. Where permitted, and subject to certain conditions, the Company may also delegate the maintenance of our anti-money laundering procedures (including the acquisition of due diligence information) to a suitable person.

The Company reserves the right to request such information as is necessary to verify the identity of a subscriber. In the event of delay or failure on the part of the subscriber in producing any information required for verification purposes, we may refuse to accept the application, in which case any funds received will be returned without interest to the account from which they were originally debited. In cases as these, after an internal analysis, the Company may include relevant the subscriber on a restricted list, and decline all future financial transactions involving that subscriber. According to Brazilian anti-money laundering laws, this information must be reported to the Brazilian Council for Financial Activities Control or COAF.

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The Company also reserves the right to refuse to make any redemption payment to a shareholder if directors or officers suspect or are advised that the payment of redemption proceeds to such shareholder might result in a breach of the Cayman AML Regime or other laws or regulations by any person in any relevant jurisdiction, or if such refusal is considered necessary or appropriate to ensure compliance with any such laws or regulations in any applicable jurisdiction.

If any person resident in the Cayman Islands knows or suspects or has reason for knowing or suspecting that another person is engaged in criminal conduct or money laundering, or is involved with terrorism or terrorist financing and property and the information for that knowledge or suspicion came to their attention in the course of their business in the regulated sector, or other trade, profession, business or employment, the person will be required to report such knowledge or suspicion to (i) a nominated officer (appointed in accordance with the Proceeds of Crime Act (As Revised) of the Cayman Islands) or the Financial Reporting Authority of the Cayman Islands, pursuant to the Proceeds of Crime Act (As Revised), if the disclosure relates to criminal conduct or money laundering or (ii) to a police constable or a nominated officer (pursuant to the Terrorism Act (As Revised) of the Cayman Islands) or the Financial Reporting Authority of the Cayman Islands, pursuant to the Terrorism Act (As Revised), if the disclosure relates to involvement with terrorism or terrorist financing and terrorist property. Such a report shall not be treated as a breach of confidence or of any restriction upon the disclosure of information imposed by any enactment or otherwise.

Economic Substance

The Cayman Islands enacted the International Tax Co-operation (Economic Substance) Act (As Revised), or the ESA, in January 2019. The Company is required to comply with the ESA and related regulations and guidelines. As the Company is a Cayman Islands company, compliance obligations include assessing its operations to determine the required compliance (if any) with the ESA, filing an annual notification for the Company with the Cayman Islands Registrar of Companies disclosing whether the Company is carrying out any relevant activities within the meaning of the ESA and to the extent required under the ESA, the filing of an annual return with the Department of International Tax Co-Operation. Where applicable, the Company must establish that its operations satisfy the economic substance requirements of the ESA. The Company is required to monitor its operations to ensure it remains in compliance with all requirements under the ESA. Failure to satisfy these requirements may subject the Company to penalties under the ESA.

ITEM 1. IDENTITY OF DIRECTORS, SENIOR MANAGEMENT AND ADVISERS

Not applicable.

ITEM 2. OFFER STATISTICS AND EXPECTED TIMETABLE

Not applicable.

ITEM 3. KEY INFORMATION

Selected Financial and Operating Data

PagSeguro Digital Ltd., our Cayman Islands exempted company, was incorporated on July 19, 2017 for an indefinite term. Prior to the contribution of PagSeguro Internet S.A. to it on January 4, 2018, PagSeguro Digital Ltd. had not commenced operations and had only nominal assets and liabilities.

Following our IPO on January 26, 2018, PagSeguro Digital began reporting consolidated financial information to shareholders. The historical operations of PagSeguro Brazil are deemed to be those of PagSeguro Digital.

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The following tables summarize financial data for PagSeguro Digital as of December 31, 2022, 2021 and 2020. The financial data as of December 31, 2022, 2021 and 2020 and for each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2022 are derived from our audited consolidated financial statements, included elsewhere in this annual report, except for the December 31, 2020 balance sheet data which are derived from our audited consolidated financial statements, not included elsewhere in this annual report. The selected consolidated financial data as of December 31, 2022 and 2021 and for the years ended December 31, 2022, 2021 and 2020 are derived from our year-end financial statements audited by PricewaterhouseCoopers Auditores Independentes Ltda., with offices at Avenida Brigadeiro Faria Lima, 3732, 16º andar, São Paulo, SP, Brazil 04538-132, Caixa Postal 60054. These audited consolidated financial statements were prepared in accordance with the International Financial Reporting Standards, or IFRS, as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board, or IASB. PagSeguro Digital maintains its books and records in reais.

You should read this information in conjunction with the following other information included elsewhere in this annual report:

•our audited consolidated financial statements and related notes; and

•the information under “Item 5. Operating and Financial Review and Prospects.”

The following tables present our selected financial and operating data as of and for each of the periods indicated.

STATEMENT OF OPERATIONS DATA


	For the Years Ended December 31,
	2022	2022	2021	2020
	(US$)(1)	(R$)	(R$)	(R$)
	(in millions, except amounts per share and %)
Revenue from transaction activities and other services	1,707.0	8,906.4	6,784.8	4,508.7
Financial income	1,198.4	6,252.7	3,514.4	2,177.4
Other financial income	33.7	175.8	149.5	128.6
Total revenue and income	2,939.0	15,334.9	10,448.7	6,814.7
Cost of sales and services	(1,431.8)	(7,470.9)	(5,775.9)	(3,772.3)
Selling expenses	(373.0)	(1,946.1)	(1,523.9)	(617.5)
Administrative expenses	(128.2)	(668.7)	(877.6)	(563.9)
Financial expenses	(604.0)	(3,151.6)	(790.6)	(109.2)
Other income (expenses), net	(64.9)	(338.4)	7.3	22.9
Operating profit before Income Taxes	337.2	1,759.3	1,488.0	1,774.7
Current income tax and social contribution	(11.6)	(60.7)	(119.8)	(62.8)
Deferred income tax and social contribution	(37.1)	(193.8)	(201.9)	(419.6)
Income Tax and Social Contribution	(48.8)	(254.5)	(321.7)	(482.4)
Net Income for the Year	288.4	1,504.8	1,166.3	1,292.3
Attributable to:
Equity holders of the parent	288.4	1,504.8	1,166.1	1,291.7
Non-controlling interests	—	—	0.2	0.6
Basic earnings per share attributable to equity holders of the parent – R$	0.8817	4.6002	3.5303	3.9225
Diluted earnings per share attributable to equity holders of the parent – R$	0.8760	4.5705	3.5105	3.9163


(1)			For convenience purposes only, amounts in reais for the year ended December 31, 2022 have been translated to U.S. dollars using a rate of R$5.2177 to US$1.00, the commercial selling rate for U.S. dollars at December 31, 2022 as reported by the Central Bank. These translations should not be construed as representations that the U.S. dollar amounts have been, could have been or could be converted into reais at that or at any other exchange rate. The real/U.S. dollar exchange rate fluctuates widely, and the selling rate as of December 31, 2022 may not be indicative of current or future exchange rates.

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OPERATING DATA


	At and For the Years Ended December 31,
	2022	2022	2021	2020
	(US$)(1)	(R$)	(R$)	(R$)
Operating Statistics:
Active merchants at year-end (in millions)	N/A	7.1	7.7	7.0
TPV (in billions)	140.2	731.4	456.1	231.5
PagBank active users (in millions)	N/A	16.2	13.1	7.9


(1)			For convenience purposes only, amounts in reais for the year ended December 31, 2022 have been translated to U.S. dollars using a rate of R$5.2177 to US$1.00, the commercial selling rate for U.S. dollars at December 31, 2022 as reported by the Central Bank. These translations should not be construed as representations that the U.S. dollar amounts have been, could have been or could be converted into reais at that or at any other exchange rate. The real/U.S. dollar exchange rate fluctuates widely, and the selling rate as of December 31, 2022 may not be indicative of current or future exchange rates.

BALANCE SHEET DATA

The following table presents the line items from PagSeguro Digital’s consolidated balance sheet data:


	At December 31,
	2022	2022	2021	2020
	(US$)(1)	(R$)	(R$)	(R$)
	(in millions)
Current Assets
Cash and cash equivalents	350.6	1,829.1	1,794.4	1,640.1
Financial investments	211.5	1,103.3	782.6	979.8
Accounts receivable	6,947.2	36,248.6	23,428.5	16,043.0
Inventories	2.5	13.3	49.5	30.4
Taxes recoverable	78.7	410.8	469.5	389.0
Other receivables	31.1	162.0	194.8	164.8
Total Current Assets	7,621.6	39,767.1	26,719.3	19,247.1
Non-Current Assets
Judicial deposits	8.6	44.9	40.2	7.4
Accounts receivable	142.9	745.5	228.9	33.6
Other receivables	3.5	18.5	11.7	10.3
Investment	0.3	1.7	15.7	16.4
Deferred income tax and social contribution	19.1	99.4	120.8	83.3
Property and equipment	477.9	2,493.5	2,289.1	1,802.6
Intangible assets	413.7	2,158.8	1,650.2	1,123.6
Total Non-Current Assets	1,066.0	5,562.2	4,356.5	3,077.2
TOTAL ASSETS	8,687.6	45,329.3	31,075.8	22,324.3

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	At December 31,
	2022	2022	2021	2020
	(US$)(1)	(R$)	(R$)	(R$)
	(in millions)
Current Liabilities
Payables to third parties	3,447.5	17,988.1	13,217.2	10,101.5
Trade payables	86.1	449.1	578.0	335.5
Payables to related parties	113.8	593.9	543.6	58.3
Derivative financial instruments	4.3	22.3	14.3	—
Deposits	1,935.8	10,100.6	3,056.4	572.0
Borrowings	—	—	1,005.8	—
Salaries and social security charges	56.1	292.8	259.7	175.2
Taxes and contributions	17.2	89.8	63.9	26.0
Provision for contingencies	8.9	46.2	27.7	17.1
Deferred revenue	24.2	126.0	162.6	186.2
Other liabilities	6.0	31.5	73.7	102.6
Total Current Liabilities	5,699.9	29,740.4	19,002.9	11,574.5
Non-Current Liabilities
Payables to third parties	16.2	84.8	—	—
Deferred income tax and social contribution	299.8	1,564.2	1,391.8	1,132.6
Deposits	363.1	1,894.7	77.6	194.1
Provision for contingencies	2.8	14.4	13.9	11.7
Deferred revenue	3.4	17.5	17.3	27.3
Other liabilities	32.8	171.3	70.2	56.6
Total Non-Current Liabilities	718.1	3,746.8	1,570.7	1,422.4
TOTAL LIABILITIES	6,418.0	33,487.2	20,573.6	12,996.9
TOTAL EQUITY	2,269.6	11,842.1	10,502.2	9,327.5
TOTAL LIABILITIES AND EQUITY	8,687.6	45,329.3	31,075.8	22,324.3


(1)			For convenience purposes only, amounts in reais for the year ended December 31, 2022 have been translated to U.S. dollars using a rate of R$5.2177 to US$1.00, the commercial selling rate for U.S. dollars at December 31, 2022 as reported by the Central Bank. These translations should not be construed as representations that the U.S. dollar amounts have been, could have been or could be converted into reais at that or at any other exchange rate. The real/U.S. dollar exchange rate fluctuates widely, and the selling rate as of December 31, 2022 may not be indicative of current or future exchange rates.

NON-GAAP FINANCIAL MEASURES

We present non-GAAP financial measures when we believe that the additional information is useful and meaningful to investors. These non-GAAP financial measures are provided to enhance investors’ overall understanding of our current financial performance and its prospects for the future. Specifically, we believe the non-GAAP financial measures provide useful information to both management and investors by excluding certain expenses, gains and losses, as the case may be, which may not be indicative of our core operating results and business outlook.

These measures may be different from non-GAAP financial measures used by other companies. The presentation of this non-GAAP financial information, which is not prepared under any comprehensive set of accounting rules or principles, is not intended to be considered separately from, or as a substitute for, our financial information prepared and presented in accordance with IFRS, as issued by the IASB. Non-GAAP financial measures have limitations in that they do not reflect all of the amounts associated with our results of operations as determined in accordance with IFRS. These measures should only be used to evaluate our results of operations in conjunction with the corresponding GAAP financial measures.

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Reconciliation of Non-GAAP Financial Measures

The following table presents a reconciliation of our non-GAAP financial measures to the most directly comparable GAAP measures for the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021:


	For the Year Ended December 31,
	2022	Percent Change		2021
	(in millions of reais, except for amounts per share)

Total revenue and income	15,334.9	46.8	%	10,448.7
Non-GAAP total revenue and income	15,334.9	46.8	%	10,448.7
Total expenses	(13,575.7)	51.5	%	(8,960.7)
Less: Share-based long-term incentive plan (LTIP)	79.4	(78.6)	%	370.6
Less: M&A Expenses	18.5	(15,5)%		21.9
Plus: PagPhone realizable value reversal	(52.5)	(100.0)	%	—
Less: Software's disposals	40.2	100.0	%	—
Less: Boleto Flex impairment	12.6	100.0	%	—
Less: Agreement with POS Supplier	10.0	100.0	%	—
Less: capitalized expenses of platforms development	31.9	100.0	%	—
Non-GAAP total expenses(1)	(13,435.6)	56.8	%	(8,568.2)
Profit before income taxes	1,759.3	18.2	%	1,488.0
Plus: Total non-GAAP Adjustments	140.1	(64.3)	%	392.5
Non-GAAP profit before income taxes(2)	1,899.4	1.0	%	1,880.5
Income tax and social contribution	(254.5)	(20.9)	%	(321.7)
Less: Income tax and social contribution on non-GAAP adjustments (6)	(47.6)	(64.3)	%	(133.5)
Non-GAAP deferred income tax(3)	(302.1)	(33.6)	%	(455.2)
Net income	1,504.8	29.0	%	1,166.3
Plus: Total non-GAAP adjustments, net of income tax and social contribution	92.5	(64.3)	%	259.0
Non-GAAP net income(4)	1,597.3	12.1	%	1,425.3
Basic earnings per share attributable to equity holders of the parent — R$	4.6002	30.3	%	3.5303
Diluted earnings per share attributable to equity holders of the parent — R$	4.5705	30.2	%	3.5105
Non-GAAP basic earnings per share attributable to equity holders of the parent — R$(5)	4.8828	4.3	%	4.6796
Non-GAAP diluted earnings per share attributable to equity holders of the parent — R$(5)	4.8511	4.3	%	4.6530


(1)			Non-GAAP total expenses excludes the “non-GAAP adjustments” comprised of: •LTIP expenses: This consists of expenses for equity awards under our two long-term incentive plans (LTIP and LTIP-Goals). We exclude LTIP expenses from our non-GAAP measures primarily because they are non-cash expenses and the related employer payroll taxes depend on our stock price and the timing and size of exercises and vesting of equity awards, over which management has limited to no control, and as such management does not believe these expenses correlate to the operation of our business. •Mergers & acquisitions expenses: This consists of expenses for mergers & acquisitions transactions, including, among others, expenses for external consulting, accounting and legal services in connection with due diligence and negotiating mergers & acquisitions documentation for our acquisitions, as well as amortization and write-downs of the fair value of certain acquired assets. We exclude mergers & acquisitions expenses from our non-GAAP measures primarily because such expenses are non-recurring and do not correlate to the operation of our business. •Other non-recurring effects: This consists of one-time effects related to PagPhone sales, PagPhone inventory provisions, tax impairment, software disposals and development. We exclude non-recurring effects from our non-GAAP measures primarily because such items are non-recurring and do not correlate to the operation of our business.
(2)			Non-GAAP profit before income taxes reflects the adjustments described in footnote (1) above.
(3)			Non-GAAP income tax and social contribution consists of income tax at the rate of 34% calculated on the LTIP expenses, M&A expenses and non-recurring adjustments described in footnote (1) above.
(4)			Non-GAAP net income reflects the sum of the adjustments described in footnotes (1) and (3) above.
(5)			Non-GAAP basic earnings per common share and non-GAAP diluted earnings per common share reflect the adjustments to non-GAAP net income, which is allocated in full to Equity holders of the parent.
(6)			Income tax and social contribution on non-GAAP adjustments: This represents the income tax effect related to the LTIP expenses, mergers & acquisitions expenses and non-recurring adjustments mentioned above.

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Financial Information in U.S. Dollars

Solely for the convenience of the reader, we have translated some of the real amounts included in this annual report into U.S. dollars. The exchange rate for reais into U.S. dollars was R$5.2177 to U.S.$1.00 as of December 31, 2022, R$5.5805 to U.S.$1.00 as of December 31, 2021 and, R$5.1967 to U.S.$1.00 as of December 31, 2020, in each case, the commercial selling rate for U.S. dollars as reported by the Central Bank. Unless otherwise indicated, we have translated real amounts into U.S. dollars using a rate of R$5.2177 to US$1.00. Such translations should not be construed as representations that the real amounts represent, have been or could be converted into U.S. dollars at the rates indicated or at any other exchange rate. The real/U.S. dollar exchange rate fluctuates widely, and the selling rate as of December 31, 2022 may not be indicative of current or future exchange rates. For more information on risks relating to exchange rate fluctuations on our business, see “Risk Factors—Risks Relating to Brazil—Exchange rate instability may have adverse effects on the Brazilian economy, us and the price of our Class A common shares.”

RISK FACTORS

Risks Relating to our Business and Industry

If we cannot keep pace with rapid technological developments to provide new and innovative products and services, and address the rapidly evolving market for transactions on mobile devices, the use of our products and services and, consequently, our revenues could decline.

Rapid, significant and disruptive technological changes continue to impact the industries in which we operate, including developments in payment card tokenization, mobile payments, social commerce (i.e., e-commerce through social networks), authentication, virtual currencies, distributed ledger or blockchain technologies, near field communication and other proximity or contactless payment methods, virtual reality, machine learning and artificial intelligence.

For instance, mobile devices are increasingly used for e-commerce transactions and payments. A significant and growing portion of our customers access our platforms through mobile devices, including for regular online shopping as well as for in-person transactions. In the year ended December 31, 2022, 81% of our customers accessed our platforms through mobile devices, compared with 80% in the year ended December 31, 2021. We may lose customers if we are not able to continue to meet our customers’ mobile and multi-screen experience expectations. Different mobile devices and platforms use a wide variety of technical and other configurations, which increase the challenges involved in providing payments in the mobile environment. In addition, a number of other companies with significant resources and a number of innovative startups have introduced products and services focusing on mobile markets. We cannot guarantee that we will be able to continue to meet customer expectations in the mobile environment or increase our volume of mobile transactions.

We cannot predict the effects of technological changes on our business. In addition to our own initiatives and innovations, we rely in part on third parties for the development of and access to new technologies. We expect that new services and technologies applicable to the industries in which we operate will continue to emerge and may be superior to, or render obsolete, the technologies we currently use in our products and services. Developing and incorporating new technologies into our products and services may require substantial expenditures, take considerable time, and ultimately may not be successful. In addition, our ability to adopt new products and services and develop new technologies may be inhibited by industry-wide standards, payment networks, changes to laws and regulations, resistance to change from consumers or merchants, third-party intellectual property rights, or other factors. Our success will depend on our ability to develop and incorporate new technologies, address the challenges posed by the rapidly evolving market for mobile transactions through our platforms and adapt to technological changes and evolving industry standards; if we are unable to do so in a timely or cost-effective manner, our business could be harmed.

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Increasingly intense competition may harm our business.

We compete in markets characterized by vigorous competition, changing technology, changing customer needs, evolving industry standards and frequent introductions of new products and services. We compete with existing providers of digital payment solutions, in-person payments via POS, free digital accounts, prepaid cards and acquisition activities. In the online digital payments market, we compete primarily with international online payment services and regional players. In the POS payments market, we compete primarily with international players and regional players. As is the case with the digital payments industry in general, we also compete with other means of payment, both digital and traditional, including cash, checks, Pix (a 24/7 instant payment platform sponsored by the Brazilian government), money orders and electronic bank deposits.

We expect competition to intensify in the future as existing and new competitors introduce new services or enhance existing services. We compete against many companies to attract customers, and some of these companies have greater financial resources and substantially larger bases of customers than we do, which may provide them with significant competitive advantages. These companies may devote greater resources than we do to the development, promotion and sale of products and services, and they may be more effective in introducing innovative products and services that hinder our growth. Competing services tied to established banks and other financial institutions may offer greater liquidity and create greater consumer confidence in the safety and efficiency of their services than PagSeguro. Mergers and acquisitions by or among these companies may lead to even larger competitors with more resources. We also expect new entrants to offer competitive products and services. For example, established banks and other financial institutions currently offer online payments and those, which do not yet provide such services could quickly and easily develop them. Certain merchants have longstanding exclusive, or nearly exclusive, relationships with our competitors to accept payment cards and other services that we offer. These relationships may make it difficult or cost prohibitive for us to conduct material amounts of business with them. If we are unable to differentiate ourselves from and successfully compete with our competitors, our business will suffer serious harm.

We may also face pricing pressures from competitors. Certain competitors are able to offer lower prices to merchants for similar services by cross subsidizing their digital payments services using other services they offer. This competition may mean we need to reduce our pricing, which could reduce our profits. As they grow, merchants may demand more customized and favorable pricing from us, and competitive pressures may require us to agree to this, further reducing our profits. If market conditions require us to increase the discounts or incentives we provide, our business could suffer serious harm.

Interruption or failure of our information technology and communications systems could impair our operations, which could damage our reputation and harm our results of operations.

Our success and ability to process payments and provide high quality customer service depend on the efficient and uninterrupted operation of our computer and information technology systems. Any failure of our computer systems and information technology to operate effectively or to integrate with other systems, performance inadequacy or breach in security may cause interruptions in the availability of our sites, delays in product fulfillment and reduced efficiency of our operations. Any failures, problems or security breaches may mean that fewer customers are willing to purchase the products we offer in the future. Factors that could occur and significantly disrupt our operations include: system failures and outages caused by fire, floods, earthquakes, power loss, telecommunications failures, sabotage, vandalism, terrorist attacks and similar events, software errors, computer viruses, worms, physical or electronic break-ins and similar disruptions from unauthorized tampering with our computer systems and data centers; in addition, security breaches related to the storage and transmission of proprietary information or customer information, such as credit card numbers or other personal information. Also, if too many customers access our sites within a short period of time due to any reason, we have experienced in the past and may in the future experience system interruptions that make our sites unavailable or prevent us from efficiently completing payment transactions, which may reduce the attractiveness of our products and services. We cannot assure you that such events will not occur. While we have backup systems and contingency plans for certain aspects of our operations and business processes, our planning does not account for all possible scenarios.

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Specifically, we have entered into IT services agreements with DigitalServices and Amazon Web Services, Inc, or AWS, which are both focused on IT infrastructure management services and cloud computing as well as the development of software and services to promote digital transformation. DigitalServices is controlled by our parent company UOL and, therefore, our affiliate. Under these contracts, the two companies provide us with internet data centers to host our sites and keep them operational, and we rely on them and their operational, privacy and security procedures and controls and their ability to keep our sites operational. In December 2019, the colocation agreement that we entered into with DigitalServices was assigned to UD Tecnologia, a subsidiary of DigitalServices that was sold to Digital Colony in April 2020 and rebranded as Scala Data Centers S.A., or Scala Data Centers, which is not a related party of ours. Failure by IT services providers to adequately keep our sites operational, including any prolonged or unscheduled service disruption that affects our customers’ ability to utilize our sites, could result in the loss of sales and customers and increased costs, which could materially affect our reputation or results of operations. In addition, we rely in part on external IT services providers to advise us of any security breaches. If any of those providers do not provide us with notice on a timely basis, our reputation and results of operations may be harmed. We may not be able to timely replace our external IT services providers, or find a replacement on a cost-efficient basis, in the event of disruptions, failures to provide services or other issues that may harm our business. For more information on our agreement with DigitalServices, see “Item 7. Major Shareholders and Related Party Transactions—Related Party Transactions.”

Any disruptions or service interruptions that affect our sites could damage our reputation, require us to spend significant capital and other resources and expose us to a risk of loss or litigation and possible liability. Some of our agreements with third-party service providers do not require those providers to indemnify us for losses resulting from any disruption in service. Any of the above disruptions could seriously harm our results of operation.

Our business is subject to cyberattacks and security and privacy breaches.

Our business involves the collection, storage, processing, and transmission of customers’ personal data, including financial information. In addition, a significant number of our customers authorize us to bill their payment card or bank accounts directly for all transaction and other fees charged by us. We have built our reputation on the premise that our platform offers customers a secure way to make payments. An increasing number of organizations, including large merchants and businesses, other large technology companies, financial institutions and government institutions, have disclosed breaches of their information security systems, some of which have involved sophisticated and highly targeted attacks, including on portions of their websites or infrastructure.

The techniques used to obtain unauthorized, improper or illegal access to our systems, our data or our customers’ data, to disable or degrade service, or to sabotage systems are constantly evolving, may be difficult to detect quickly and often are not recognized until launched against a target. Unauthorized parties may attempt to gain access to our systems or facilities through various means, including, among others, hacking into our systems or those of our customers, partners or vendors, or attempting to fraudulently induce our employees, customers, partners, vendors or other users of our systems into disclosing user names, passwords, payment card information or other sensitive information, which may in turn be used to access our information technology systems. Certain efforts may be supported by significant financial and technological resources, making them even more sophisticated and difficult to detect. Although we have developed systems and processes that are designed to protect our data and customer data and to prevent data loss and other security breaches, and expect to continue to expend significant additional resources to bolster these protections, these security measures cannot provide absolute security. Our information technology and infrastructure may be vulnerable to cyberattacks or security breaches, and third parties may be able to access our customers’ personal or proprietary information and card data that are stored on or accessible through those systems. Our security measures may also be breached due to human error, malfeasance, system errors or vulnerabilities, or other irregularities. Any actual or perceived breach of our security could interrupt our operations, result in our systems or services being unavailable, result in improper disclosure of data, materially harm our reputation and brand, result in significant legal and financial exposure, lead to loss of customer confidence in, or decreased use of, our products and services, and adversely affect our business and results of operations. In addition, any breaches of network or data security at our customers, partners or vendors (including data center and cloud computing providers) could have similar negative effects. Actual or perceived vulnerabilities or data breaches may lead to claims against us.

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In 2021, we experienced a cyberattack that targeted one of our subsidiaries, Wirecard Brazil Instituição de Pagamento S.A. (formerly Wirecard Brazil S.A.), or MOIP, which we acquired in October 2020. The incident occurred between September 25, 2021 and September 29, 2021, during which the hackers demanded that specified payments be made to prevent the public disclosure or sale of the targeted data that was compromised, which included personal profile information of MOIP customers. At the time of the cyberattack, MOIP had a distinct and separate IT server and operating environment from the rest of our IT platform and systems, and therefore none of our databases, customer information or systems were subject or comprised during the incident, or formed part of the compromised data, beyond those independently within the MOIP IT environment. We promptly followed the requirements of applicable Brazilian law, including the filing of a formal report to the ANPD and Central Bank on October 7, 2021, followed by delivery of further requested information to the ANPD on January 5, 2022 and April 8, 2022. While our review of the incident has not identified evidence of unauthorized access to sensitive information, such as passwords or credit card details, and our IT systems (including the MOIP IT environment) are operating normally, we cannot be certain that we will not encounter adverse consequences of this incident or other weaknesses, vulnerabilities or deficiencies that could seriously harm our business, financial condition or results of operations. For more information, see “Item 4. Information on the Company—Protecting Our Clients—2021 MOIP Cybersecurity Incident.”

In addition, under card rules and our contracts with our card processors, if there is a breach of card information that we store, we could be liable to the payment card issuers for their cost of issuing new cards and related expenses. We also expect to spend significant additional resources to protect against security or privacy breaches, and may be required to address problems caused by breaches. Additionally, while we maintain insurance policies, we do not maintain significant insurance policies specifically for cyberattacks and our current insurance policies may not be adequate to reimburse us for losses caused by security breaches, and we may not be able to collect fully, if at all, under these insurance policies.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, our remote work practices have expanded and, as a result, the risks related to cybersecurity failures in our internal systems have also risen. As such, interruptions or flaws in our information technology systems, such as in our telework systems, accounting calculations and billing, caused by accidents, malfunctions or malicious acts may impact our corporate, commercial or operational activities, which could adversely affect our business and results of operations, as well as our reputation and market reliability. Cyberattacks have become increasingly sophisticated and diffuse. We keep sensitive client information in our database, which may be the subject of cyberattacks by individuals seeking unauthorized access to such information for misuse. As such, failures to protect our clients’ personal data, as well as nonconformance with the applicable legislation, may give rise to additional costs and adversely affect our image and reputation.

We are subject to risks associated with noncompliance with the General Data Protection Law and may be adversely affected by the imposition of fines and other types of penalties.

In 2018, Law No. 13,709/2018, the General Data Protection Law (Lei Geral de Proteção de Dados), or LGPD, was enacted, as amended by Law No. 13,853/2019, to govern the practices related to the use of personal data, replacing the sparse and sectoral standards that previously regulated rights to data privacy and protection in Brazil. The LGPD became effective on September 18, 2020, but the application of the administrative penalties provided for in the LGPD was postponed to August 1, 2021. By creating a microsystem of rules impacting all sectors of the economy, the LGPD provides a new legal framework to be observed in personal data processing operations. Among other provisions, it establishes the rights of data subjects, the legal bases applicable to the protection of personal data, the requirements for obtaining consent on the use of such data, when applicable, the obligations and requirements relating to security incidents and leaks and data transfers, as well as the authorization for the creation of the Brazilian Data Protection Authority or ANPD, which is the entity responsible for regulating and supervising the application of the LGPD and other data protection laws as well as imposing sanctions in the event of noncompliance with the legal rules and obligations. On August 26, 2020, the Brazilian government issued Decree No. 10,474/2020, approving the regulatory framework and list of commissioned positions for the ANPD. The decree became effective in November 2020, when ANPD’s chief executive officer appointment was published in the Brazilian official federal newspaper.

On February 27, 2023, ANPD issued the dosimetry regulation, which establishes the criteria to be used when any administrative sanctions are applied. Although the regulation still includes some vague definitions (such as what entails large-scale data processing), it clarified the elements ANPD takes into account when analyzing a data related incident, such as recurrence (incidents up to five years apart), good faith, cooperation, transparency, proportionality and the adoption of best practices and governance policies.

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We must also provide a secure environment for our users. Investing in technical and administrative maintenance for information security and personal data protection will also be necessary, including to support our corporate governance structure for personal data protection. In addition, under the LGPD, we have a legal duty to maintain a communication channel with data subjects whose data we process, including our users and partners.

Personal data subjects are entitled to the following rights, which we must ensure: (i) to obtain confirmation of existence of personal data processing, (ii) to access their personal data, (iii) to correct all incomplete, inaccurate or outdated personal data, (iv) to carry out portability processes to transfer personal data to another service or product, in accordance with the additional regulations to be set forth by the ANPD, (v) to request the deletion of processed personal data based on consent, or the right to revoke their previously given consent, (vi) to obtain information on government and private-sector entities with whom those responsible for data processing have shared their data, (vii) to be allowed to deny consent to personal data processing and to be advised of the consequences of that denial, and (viii) to request the review of decisions made solely based on automated processing. The LGPD also establishes that the following information must be provided to data subjects, including through privacy notices: (i) the specific purpose of such processing, (ii) processing methods and duration, (iii) the identity of the data controller, (iv) the contact information of the data controller, (v) information with regards to the sharing of personal data with third parties and its purpose and (vi) description of responsibilities, particularly the responsibilities of the processing agents involved.

We may be required to indemnify users affected by violations of their rights as data subjects, such as their right to transparency or to obtain information on the processing of their personal data. Should we disclose insufficient information regarding data processing as required by the LGPD, we may also be subject to administrative sanctions imposed by personal data protection, consumer protection or public interest protection agencies and entities, including the ANPD. Noncompliance with any LGPD provisions may lead to the following: (i) individual or class actions being filed seeking damages due to breaches not only of the LGPD, but also of any sparse and industry-specific data protection laws still in force and (ii) the imposition of the penalties set forth by the Consumer Protection Code and the Civil Framework for the Internet by certain consumer protection agencies, as they have been acting in this regard well before the effectiveness of the LGPD and the actual establishment of the ANPD, particularly in cases of security incidents resulting in undue access to personal data.

If our operations and business model are not in compliance with the LGPD’s rules, we may be subject to formal warnings, public sanctions, the deletion of data or the suspension of data processing activities. Furthermore, we may be subject to a fine equal to up to 2% of our gross sales, or the gross sales of our economic group in Brazil, in the preceding fiscal year, excluding taxes, but limited to a total of R$50.0 million per violation. In addition, we may be held liable for individual or collective material moral damages caused by our failure to meet any of the obligations set forth by the LGPD. We may be held legally responsible for paying damages to users harmed by violations of their rights as personal data subjects, such as their rights to transparency, in that they may obtain information regarding the processing of their personal data and other rights set forth in the LGPD.

If we are found to not have sufficiently provided information about the processing of personal data in accordance with the requirements set forth by the LGPD, we may also face administrative sanctions by public entities and regulatory bodies that govern personal data, consumer protection and public interests.

The LGPD and other laws and regulations that may be passed in the future may be interpreted and applied differently over time and from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. It is possible they will be interpreted and applied in ways that will materially and adversely affect our business. Any failure to comply with (i) our privacy policies, (ii) any regulatory requirements or orders, or (iii) other local, state, federal, or international privacy or consumer protection-related laws and regulations could materially and adversely affect our business.

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Our services must integrate with a variety of operating systems and networks, and the hardware that enables merchants to accept payment cards must interoperate with mobile networks offered by telecom operators and third-party mobile devices utilizing those operating systems. If we are unable to ensure that our services or hardware interoperate with such networks, operating systems and devices, our business may be seriously harmed.

We are dependent on the ability of our products and services to integrate with a variety of operating systems and networks, as well as web browsers that we do not control. Any changes in these systems or networks that degrade the functionality of our products and services, impose additional costs or requirements on us, or give preferential treatment to competitive services, including their own services, could seriously harm the levels of usage of our products and services. We also rely on bank platforms to process some of our transactions. If there are any issues with or service interruptions in these bank platforms, users may be unable to have their transactions completed, which would seriously harm our business.

In addition, our hardware interoperates with mobile networks offered by telecom operators and mobile devices developed by third parties. Changes in these networks or in the design of these mobile devices may limit the interoperability of our hardware with such networks and devices and require modifications to our hardware. If we are unable to ensure that our hardware continues to interoperate effectively with such networks and devices, or if doing so is costly, our business may be seriously harmed.

Our business depends on a strong and trusted brand, and any failure to maintain, protect and enhance our brand would harm our business.

We have developed a strong and trusted brand, highly linked to the reputation and public image of UOL, our controlling shareholder, which has contributed significantly to the success of our business. Our brand is predicated on the idea that sellers and buyers will trust us and find value in building and growing their businesses with our products and services. Maintaining, protecting and enhancing our brand are critical to expanding our base of sellers, buyers and other third-party partners, as well as increasing engagement with our products and services. This will depend largely on our ability to maintain trust, be a technology leader, and continue to provide high-quality and secure products and services. Any negative publicity about our industry, our company or UOL, our controlling shareholder, the quality and reliability of our products and services, our risk management processes, changes to our products and services, our ability to effectively manage and resolve seller and buyer complaints, our privacy and security practices, litigation, regulatory activity, the experience of sellers and buyers with our products or services, and changes in the public opinion of UOL, could harm our reputation and the confidence in and use of our products and services. Harm to our brand can arise from many sources, including failure by us or our partners to satisfy expectations of service and quality; inadequate protection of sensitive information; compliance failures and claims; litigation and other claims; employee misconduct; and misconduct by our partners, service providers or other counterparties. If we do not successfully maintain a strong and trusted brand, our business could be seriously harmed.

Our business is subject to extensive government regulation and oversight and our status under these regulations may change. Violation of or non-compliance with present or future regulations could be costly, expose us to substantial liability and force us to change our business practices, any of which could seriously harm our business and results of operations.

The Central Bank has duly authorized PagSeguro Brazil and MOIP to operate as payment institutions, and it has authorized BancoSeguro S.A., or BancoSeguro, to operate as a financial institution. Both PagSeguro Brazil and MOIP are licensed by the Central Bank as payment institution issuers of electronic currency and as acquirers. PagSeguro Brazil’s authorization to operate under such categories was issued by the Central Bank on October 17, 2018, and, on March 18, 2019 PagSeguro was authorized by the Central Bank to operate as a payment institution issuer of post-paid instruments (such as credit cards) within third-party payment schemes. Currently, our digital payments activity performed by PagSeguro Brazil and MOIP as payment scheme settlors is exempt from authorization. In March 2023, the Central Bank authorized PagInvest Pagbank to operate as a securities broker-dealer (corretora de títulos e valores mobiliários). Registration with the CVM is required for PagInvest to commence its operations, and such registration is still pending. Our investment related activities in the securities market are currently carried out by BancoSeguro through our investment platform.

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In addition, early payment of receivables is part of our activities. Law No. 12,865/2013 prohibits payment institutions such as PagSeguro Brazil and MOIP from performing activities that are limited to financial institutions. There is some debate under Brazilian law as to whether providing early payment of receivables to merchants could be characterized as “lending,” which is an activity that is limited to financial institutions. Similarly, there is some debate as to whether the discount rates applicable to this early payment feature should be considered as “interest,” in which case the limits set by the Brazilian Usury Law would apply to these rates. In this context, the Central Bank Office of Legal Counsel (Procuradoria-Geral do Banco Central) issued a legal opinion in which it concluded that: (i) the advance of payments of trade receivables (credit card installment receivables backed by executed and paid transactions) to merchants relates to the early payment of an obligation and should not be confused with activities of financial institutions; and (ii) discount rates applicable to this prepayment mechanism are subject to the limits set forth in the Brazilian Usury Law. If new laws are enacted or the courts’ interpretation of this activity changes, either preventing us from providing early payments of receivables to merchants or limiting the fees we usually charge, our financial performance could be negatively affected. For further information regarding these regulatory matters, see “Item 4. Information on the Company—Regulation—Regulation of the digital payments industry in Brazil.”

BancoSeguro is licensed in Brazil as a multi-purpose bank, with commercial and investment banking portfolios. As a financial institution, BancoSeguro is subject to Law No. 4,595/1964 and the rules issued by the National Monetary Council (the Conselho Monetário Nacional, or CMN), and the Central Bank. Brazilian financial institutions are subject to extensive government regulations, including those relating to: (i) minimum capital requirements; (ii) compulsory deposits/reserve requirements; (iii) investment requirements in fixed assets; (iv) lending limits and other credit restrictions; (v) accounting and statistical requirements; (v) price and salary controls; and (vi) tax policy and regulation. Additionally, within the scope of its investment banking portfolio, BancoSeguro, through our investment platform, acts as a distributor of securities (currently, third party investment funds) and as an intermediary in securities markets, and in this regard BancoSeguro is regulated and supervised by the Brazilian Securities Commission (Comissão de Valores Mobiliários, or CVM), in accordance with Law No. 6,385/1976 and the rules issued by CVM and by BSM Supervisão de Mercados (the self-regulatory division of the Brazilian stock exchange, the B3).

Brazilian payment institutions and financial institutions have no control over government regulations applicable to their activities. Any changes in such regulations could adversely affect BancoSeguro’s, MOIP’s and PagSeguro Brazil’s operations and financial results.

Furthermore, if we are found to be in violation of any current or future regulations, we could be (i) required to pay substantial fines (including per transaction fines) and disgorgement of our profits, (ii) required to change our business practices, or (iii) subjected to resolution regimes such as an intervention by the Central Bank and the out-of-court liquidation. We could also be subject to private lawsuits. Any of these consequences could seriously harm our business and results of operations.

We are subject to costs and risks associated with increased or changing laws and regulations affecting our business, including those relating to the sale of consumer products. Specifically, developments in data protection and privacy laws could harm our business, financial condition, results, or operations.

We operate in a complex regulatory and legal environment that exposes us to compliance and litigation risks and that could materially affect our results of operations. These laws may change, sometimes significantly, as a result of political, economic or social events. Some of the federal, state or local laws and regulations that affect us include: those relating to consumer products, product liability or consumer protection; those relating to the manner in which we advertise, market or sell products; labor and employment laws, including wage and hour laws; tax laws or interpretations thereof; data protection and privacy laws and regulations; and securities and exchange laws and regulations. For instance, data protection and privacy laws are developing to consider the changes in cultural and consumer attitudes towards the protection of personal data. There can be no guarantee that we will have sufficient financial resources to comply with any new regulations or successfully compete in the context of a shifting regulatory environment. Any additional privacy laws or regulations could seriously harm our business, financial condition or results of operations.

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Changes in tax laws, tax incentives, benefits or differing interpretations of tax laws may adversely affect our results of operations.

Changes in tax laws, regulations, related interpretations and tax accounting standards in Brazil, the Cayman Islands or the United States may result in a higher tax rate on our earnings, which may significantly reduce our profits and cash flows from operations. For example, in 2015 the Brazilian government increased the rate of PIS/COFINS tax (which is a social contribution on gross revenues) from 0% to 4.65% on financial income realized by Brazilian companies that are taxed under the non-cumulative regime (which is the tax regime that applies to us). In addition, our results of operations and financial condition may decline if certain tax incentives are not retained or renewed. For example, Brazilian Law No. 11,196 currently grants tax benefits to companies that invest in research and development, provided that some requirements are met, which significantly reduces our annual income tax expense. On the other hand, if taxes applicable to our business increase or any tax benefits are revoked and we cannot alter our cost structure to pass our tax increases on to customers, our financial condition, results of operations and cash flows could be harmed. Our payment processing activities are also subject to a Municipal Tax on Services (Imposto Sobre Serviços), or ISS. Any increases in ISS rates would also harm our profitability.

In addition, Brazilian government authorities at the federal, state and local levels are considering changes in tax laws to cover budgetary shortfalls resulting from the economic downturn in Brazil. If these proposals are enacted they may harm our profitability by increasing our tax burden, increasing our tax compliance costs, or otherwise affecting our financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. Some tax rules related to the collection, ancillary obligations or changes in the applicable tax rates in Brazil may be amended by the authorities without prior notice or a transition period for implementation. We may not always be aware of all such changes that affect our business and we may therefore inadvertently fail to pay the applicable taxes or otherwise comply with tax regulations, which may result in additional tax assessments, penalties and interests for our company. In this sense, we are involved in tax proceedings based on differences of interpretation between us and the Brazilian tax authorities regarding tax laws and regulations. For further information, see “Item 8. Financial Information—Tax and Social Security Proceedings.”

At the municipal level, the Brazilian government enacted Supplementary Law No. 157/2016, which imposed changes regarding the taxes applied to services we render. Once these changes are enforced, our taxes will be due in the municipality in which the acquirer of our services is located, rather than in the municipality in which our facilities are located. This obligation took force in January 2018, but its enforcement has been delayed by Direct Unconstitutionality Action No. 5835, or the ADI, filed by taxpayers. The ADI challenges Supplementary Law No. 157/2016’s constitutionality before the Brazilian Federal Supreme Court, or STF, arguing that the new legislation would adversely affect companies due to the increased costs and bureaucracy that would come with making ISS tax payments to several municipalities and complying with tax reporting obligations connected therewith. As a result, the STF granted an injunction to suspend the enforcement of Supplementary Law No. 157/2016. A final decision on this matter is currently pending. Moreover, the Brazilian government recently enacted Supplementary Law No. 175/2020, which implemented additional changes to the collection of ISS taxes on certain services, including debit or credit card services, and provided that ISS taxes due for the rendering of these services be paid to the municipality in which the recipient of the service is located. Despite the enactment of Supplementary Law No. 175/2020, due to the preliminary injunction that was granted by the STF in 2018 in response to the ADI, it can be argued that our obligation to pay ISS taxes to the municipality of our service’s recipient is also currently suspended. It could therefore be argued that the legal basis that supports Supplementary Law No. 175/2020 is currently suspended and, as a result, the obligations set forth by this law shall be understood as suspended as well. Supplementary Law No. 175/2020 also provided that ISS taxes due should be reported by the 25th day of the month following the taxable event, using a standardized electronic system, in accordance with standards to be established by the Management Committee of Ancillary Obligations (Comitê Gestor das Obrigações Acessórias), or the CGOA. There is not established timeframe for the implementation of the new standardized electronic system that will be designed by CGOA, and the CGOA members were only appointed on January 18, 2021, through the enactment of Statement No. 01/2021, by the National Confederation of Municipalities. The expectation is that the issue will be decided by the Supreme Federal Court (“STF”) in 2023.

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Furthermore, we are subject to tax laws and regulations that may be interpreted differently by tax authorities, judicial or administrative courts and us. The application of indirect taxes, such as sales and use tax, value-added tax, or VAT, provincial taxes, goods and services tax, business tax and gross receipt tax, to businesses like ours is a complex and evolving issue. Significant judgment is required to evaluate applicable tax obligations. In many cases, the ultimate tax determination is uncertain because it is not clear how existing statutes apply to our business. One or more states, or municipalities, the federal government or other countries may seek to challenge the taxation or procedures applied to our transactions imposing the charge of taxes or additional reporting, record keeping or indirect tax collection obligations on businesses like ours. New taxes could also require us to incur substantial costs to capture data and to collect and remit taxes. If such obligations were imposed, the additional costs associated with tax collection, remittance and audit requirements could have a material adverse effect on our business and financial results.

The Brazilian government has been studying a substantial tax reform in Brazil. It is not possible to precisely predict if and how potential changes may affect our business, but it is advised that prospective investors consult their tax advisors for reviewing potential impacts associated with changes in the applicable tax law.

Failure to deal effectively with fraud, fictitious transactions, bad transactions or negative customer experiences would increase our loss rate and harm our business, and could severely diminish merchant and consumer confidence in and use of our services.

We incur losses and expenses due to claims from consumers that merchants have not performed or that their goods or services do not match the merchant’s description. We seek to recover these losses and expenses from the merchant but may not be able to recover them in full when the merchant is unwilling or unable to pay. We also incur losses and expenses from claims that the consumer did not authorize the purchase, from consumer fraud and from erroneous transmissions. In addition, if the losses we incur related to card transactions become excessive, they could potentially result in a loss of our right to accept cards for payment. If we were unable to accept cards, the number of transactions processed through our platform would decrease substantially and our business would be harmed. We are also subject to the risk of fraudulent activity by merchants, consumers of products purchased through our platform, or third parties handling our user information. We take measures to detect and reduce the risk of fraud, but these measures need to be continually improved and may not be effective against new and continually evolving forms of fraud or in connection with new product offerings. If these measures fail, our business could be harmed.

Failure to maintain sufficient working capital could limit our growth and harm our business, financial condition and results of operations. Furthermore, we may offer new financial products and use new technologies that may have a negative impact on our liquidity by increasing our costs and risks associated with government regulation and investment in new technology.

We have significant working capital requirements, primarily driven by payment terms agreed with our merchant clients and the extended payment terms that they offer their customers. In our acquiring business, differences between the date when we pay our merchant clients and the date when we receive payments from card issuers may harm our liquidity and our cash flows. We expect our working capital needs to increase as our total transaction business increases. In order to finance our working capital needs, we have recently been entering into financing arrangements that decrease how long it takes us to collect our accounts receivable, and to increase how long we have to pay our accounts payable. In addition, we also use our full banking license to offer certificates of deposit (Certificados de Depósito Bancário), or CDs, through BancoSeguro primarily to fund our credit portfolio. We believe these financing arrangements and BancoSeguro’s CDs allow us to gain access to capital faster and more cheaply than we would otherwise be able to. There can be no assurance that these types of financing arrangements will continue to be available to us on acceptable terms, or at all. We may also face liquidity constraints or financial stress in connection with outstanding CDs in the face of adverse macroeconomic conditions and threats to the international financial system, such as those following the Silicon Valley Bank closure and the distressed sale of Credit Suisse to UBS in March 2023. For more information of related risks, see “Risks Relating to our Business and Industry—Our operating results are affected by decreases in consumer discretionary spending. Changes in macroeconomic conditions may reduce the volume and prices of transactions on our payments platforms and harm our growth strategies and business prospects.” If we do not have sufficient working capital, we may not be able to pursue our growth strategy, respond to competitive pressures or fund key strategic initiatives, such as the development of our sites, which may harm our business, financial condition and results of operations.

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Furthermore, we may offer new financial products under BancoSeguro. The advent of new financial products could have a variety of consequences for us. New financial products and technologies may increase our costs and risks associated with government regulation and investment in new technology. The costs of compliance with regulation and upgrading our infrastructure and technology to provide financial services could be significant. For example, we recently started to offer a new service that allows our customers to buy, hold and sell quotas for investment funds in cryptocurrencies also managed by third parties. Through our investment platform, the digital asset management platform available for our clients, customers can invest in digital currencies through a new cryptocurrency investment fund. Any failure by us or our partners to maintain the necessary controls or to manage crypto assets and funds appropriately and in compliance with applicable regulatory requirements and cybersecurity considerations could result in potential loss of cryptocurrencies, reputational harm, regulatory enforcement actions, significant financial losses, lead customers to discontinue or reduce their use of our and our partners’ products, and result in significant penalties and fines and additional restrictions, which could adversely impact our business, operating results, and financial condition. The significant regulatory uncertainty regarding crypto assets and crypto trading platforms, including in Brazil, may restrict, limit, regulate in excessive and burdensome manner the investment in crypto assets or prohibit the use of such assets and/or related transactions in different jurisdictions, which could adversely affect our activities, the manner in which we currently conduct some aspects of our business and, as a result, our financial condition, results of operations. Consequently, we are subject to potential litigation from clients who may lose their investments in cryptocurrency due to market volatility, or as a result of operational failures and from the uncertain regulatory landscape.

We rely on third parties and UOL, our largest shareholder, in many aspects of our business, which creates additional risk.

We rely on third parties in many aspects of our business, including, among others:

•networks, banks, payment processors, and payment gateways that link us to the payment card and bank clearing networks to process transactions;

•third parties that provide certain outsourced customer support and product development functions, which are critical to our operations; and

•third parties that provide facilities, infrastructure, components and services, including data center facilities and cloud computing.

The third parties that we rely on to process transactions may fail or refuse to process transactions adequately. Any of the third parties we use may breach their agreements with us, refuse to renew these agreements on commercially reasonable terms, take actions that degrade the functionality of our services, impose additional costs or requirements on us, or give preferential treatment to competing services. Financial or regulatory issues, labor issues, or other problems that prevent these third parties from providing services to us or our customers could harm our business. If our service providers do not perform satisfactorily, our operations could be disrupted, which could result in customer dissatisfaction, damage our reputation, and harm our business.

We rely on UOL, our largest shareholder, and its subsidiaries for several business services, particularly: telecommunications services; infrastructure, corporate, litigation and back-office services. UOL and its subsidiaries also provide us with advertising and media space and resell cloud services to us. For further details of these services, see “Item 7. Major Shareholders and Related Party Transactions—Related Party Transactions.”

Our failure to manage the assets underlying our customer funds properly could harm our business.

Our ability to manage and account accurately for the assets underlying our customer funds requires a high level of internal controls. As our business continues to grow and we expand our product offerings, we must continue to strengthen our internal controls accordingly. Our success requires significant public confidence in our ability to handle large and growing transaction volumes and amounts of customer funds. Any failure to maintain the necessary controls or to manage the assets underlying our customer funds accurately could severely diminish customer use of our products or result in penalties and fines, which could harm our business.

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Increases in interest rates may harm our business

Processing consumer transactions made using credit cards, as well as providing early payment of receivables to merchants when consumers make credit card purchases in installments, both make up a significant portion of our activities. In general, when Brazilian interest rates increase, consumers are more likely to may choose to make fewer purchases using credit cards; and fewer merchants may decide to use our early payment of receivables feature if our overall financing costs require us to increase the discount rate we charge for this feature. Either of these factors could cause our business activity levels to decrease.

Following significant decreases in Brazilian and global interest rates from the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, in March 2021, the Central Bank began increasing the SELIC interest rate, which was 2% p.a. at the beginning of 2021 and rose to 13.75% p.a. in December 2022. In March 2023, the SELIC rate remained at this level of 13.75% p.a. This increase resulted in a significant reduction in our margin, and in October 2021, we decided to raise the prices we charge our merchants, mainly affecting merchants who were benefiting from promotional prices. Implementing these price increases has been done over a period of time, and we intend to offset a portion of the resulting cost increases such that we maintain a rate of customer churn close to our historical levels. We began adjusting our merchants’ prices in April 2022 and gradually implemented additional pricing adjustments throughout the second and third quarters of 2022. These adjustments mainly affected merchants which benefited from promotional prices. Further increases in the Brazilian interest rate levels and other factors could lead us to implement further price increases, which could have an adverse effect on our business and financial results.

The e-commerce market in Brazil is developing, and the expansion of our business depends on the continued growth of e-commerce, as well as increased availability, quality and usage of the internet in Brazil.

Our future revenues from digital payments depend substantially on consumers’ widespread acceptance and use of the internet to conduct commerce. Rapid growth in the use of the internet (particularly to provide and purchase products and services) is a relatively recent phenomenon in Brazil and we cannot assure you that this rapid growth of acceptance and usage will continue.

Internet penetration in Brazil may never reach the levels seen in more developed countries for reasons that are beyond our control, including the lack of necessary network infrastructure or delayed development of enabling technologies, performance improvements and security measures. The infrastructure for the internet in Brazil may not be able to support continued growth in the number of users, their frequency of use or their bandwidth requirements. Delays in telecommunication and infrastructure development or other technology shortfalls may impede improvements in internet reliability in Brazil. If telecommunications services are not sufficiently available to support the growth of the internet in Brazil, response times could be slower, which would reduce internet usage and harm our services. In addition, even if internet penetration in Brazil increases, this may not lead to growth in e-commerce due to several factors, including lack of confidence by users in online security.

Furthermore, the price of internet access and internet-connected devices, such as personal computers, tablets, mobile phones and other portable devices, may limit our growth, particularly in parts of Brazil with low levels of income. Income levels in Brazil are significantly lower than in the United States and other more developed countries, while prices of both portable devices and internet access in Brazil are higher than in those countries. Income levels in Brazil may decline and device and access prices may increase in the future.

Any of these factors could limit our ability to generate revenues in future.

Our quarterly results of operations and operating metrics may fluctuate and are unpredictable and subject to seasonality, which could result in the price of our Class A common shares being unpredictable or declining.

Our quarterly results of operations may vary significantly and are not necessarily an indication of future performance. These fluctuations may be due to a variety of factors, some of which are outside of our control and may not fully reflect the underlying performance of our business. In addition, we operate in a somewhat seasonal industry, which tends to experience relatively fewer transactions in the first quarters of the year, increased activity as the year-end holiday shopping season initiates, and fewer transactions after the year-end holidays. In addition, businesses operating in Brazil, such as ours, tend to experience relatively fewer transactions during certain international sporting events.

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Factors that may cause fluctuations in our quarterly results of operations include our ability to attract and retain customers; the timing, effectiveness and costs of expansion and upgrades of our systems and infrastructure, as well as the success of those expansions and upgrades; the outcomes of legal proceedings and claims; our ability to maintain or increase revenue, gross margins and operating margins; our ability to continue introducing new services and to continue convincing customers to adopt additional offerings; increases in and timing of expenses that we may incur to grow and expand our operations and to remain competitive; period-to-period volatility related to fraud and risk losses; system failures resulting in the inaccessibility of our products and services; changes in the regulatory environment, including with respect to security, privacy or enforcement of laws and regulations by regulators, including fines, orders, or consent decrees; changes in global business or macroeconomic enforcement of laws and regulations by regulators, including fines, orders, or consent decrees; changes in global business conditions; general retail buying patterns; and the other risks described in this annual report. Future fluctuations in quarterly results may mean that our business is less predictable and may harm the trading price of our Class A common shares.

Our business could be harmed if we are unable to forecast demand for our products accurately or to manage our product inventory adequately.

With the goal of increasing our transaction business and POS device offerings, we invest broadly in our POS unit technology. Our products, such as the Moderninha and the Minizinha, often require investments with long lead times. An inability to forecast the success of a particular product correctly could harm our business. We must forecast inventory needs and expenses and place orders sufficiently in advance with our third-party suppliers and contract manufacturers based on our estimates of future demand for products. Our ability to forecast demand for our products could be affected by many factors, including an increase or decrease in demand for our products or for our competitors’ products, unanticipated changes in general market conditions, and the change in economic conditions.

If we underestimate demand for a particular product, our contract manufacturers and suppliers may not be able to deliver enough product to meet our requirements, and we may experience a shortage of that product available for sale or distribution. The shortage of a popular product could seriously harm our brand, our seller relationships, the acquisition of additional sellers and our total transaction business. If we overestimate demand for a particular product, we may have excess inventory for that product and the excess inventory may become obsolete or out of date. Inventory levels more than demand may lead us to write down or write off the inventory or sell excess inventory at further discounted prices, which could harm our profit and our business.

Some of the key components of our POS devices are sourced from a limited number of suppliers. We are therefore at risk of shortage, price increases, changes, delay or discontinuation of key components, which could disrupt and harm our business.

Some of the key components used to manufacture our POS devices, such as the chip and pin reader, come from limited sources of supply. In addition, although we are expanding our range of POS devices derived from different providers, we currently rely on one manufacturer to manufacture, test and assemble a significant amount of our POS devices. The agreements for the components used to manufacture our POS devices are entered into directly by the manufacturer of our POS devices and we do not have agreements with these suppliers. In particular, we entered into an Agreement for the Supply of Equipment on June 26, 2014, as amended from time to time, with PAX BR Comércio de Equipamentos de Informática Ltda., or PAX Brazil, Transire Fabricação de Componentes Eletrônicos Ltda., or Transire Brazil, and Net+Phone Telecomunicações Ltda, or Net+Phone, which sets forth the types of POS devices to be sold by PAX Brazil, Transire Brazil and Tec Toy S.A., or Tectoy, to us and the standard terms and conditions governing this supply of POS devices. PAX Brazil, Transire Brazil and Tectoy together serve as our main supplier of POS devices. Consideration payable to PAX Brazil, Transire Brazil and Tectoy under this agreement is determined by the number of POS devices ordered by us.

In October 2021, media reports disclosed an investigation by U.S. authorities into the activities of PAX Technology. We do not have direct commercial arrangements with PAX Technology, but rather we purchase the POS device hardware – not software – from local assemblers in Brazil that buy the components from PAX Technology and certain other suppliers. Different from other companies in the sector, we (as an acquirer) develop and install the software on the POS devices that we source from third-party suppliers in order to provide us with greater control over related data and security features of our services using POS devices, and we do not exchange any information regarding our customers, merchants or transactions with other third-party suppliers. However, we understand that the PAX Technology investigation is ongoing, and it ultimately could have an adverse impact on the global market for POS devices and related components, which in turn could have a negative effect on our business, reputation or financial results.

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We are subject to anticorruption, anti-bribery and anti-money laundering laws and regulations, and any errors, failures, or delays in complying with anticorruption, anti-bribery and anti-money laundering laws and regulations could result in significant criminal, administrative and civil lawsuits, penalties, forfeiture of significant assets, or other enforcement actions, as well as reputational harm.

We are subject to various anticorruption, anti-bribery and anti-money laundering laws and regulations that prohibit, among other things, our involvement in improper payments to certain public officials for the purpose of obtaining advantages or in transferring the proceeds of criminal activities. We have programs designed to comply with new and existing legal and regulatory requirements. However, any errors, failures, or delays in complying with anticorruption, anti-bribery and anti-money laundering laws and regulations could result in significant criminal, administrative and civil lawsuits, penalties, forfeiture of significant assets, or other enforcement actions, as well as reputational harm.

Regulators may increase enforcement of these obligations, which may require us to further revise or expand our compliance program, including the procedures we use to verify the identity of our customers and to monitor our transactions. Regulators regularly re-examine the transaction volume thresholds at which we must obtain and keep applicable records or verify identities of customers and any change in such thresholds could result in greater costs for compliance. Costs associated with fines or enforcement actions, changes in compliance requirements, or limitations on our ability to grow could harm our business and any new requirements or changes to existing requirements could impose significant costs, result in delays to planned product improvements, make it more difficult for new customers to join our network and reduce the attractiveness of our products and services.

The loss of any member of our management team and our inability to make up for such loss with a qualified, replacement could harm our business.

Our business depends upon the efforts and skill of our senior management, who has played an important role in shaping our company culture. Our future success depends to a significant extent on the continued service of our senior management team, who are critical to the development and the execution of our business strategies. Any member of our senior management team may leave us to set up or work in businesses that compete with ours. There is no guarantee that the compensation arrangements and non-competition agreements we have entered with our senior management team are sufficiently broad or effective to prevent them from resigning in order to set up or join a competitor, or that the non-competition agreements would be upheld in a court of law. In the event that a number of our senior management members leave our company, we may have difficulty finding suitable replacements, which could seriously harm us.

Our future success also depends on our ability to identify, attract, hire, train, retain, motivate and manage other highly skilled technical, managerial, information technology, marketing, product, risk management and customer service personnel. Competition for these personnel is intense, and we may not be able to successfully attract, hire, train, retain, motivate and manage sufficiently qualified personnel.

We partially rely on card issuers or card schemes to process our transactions. Changes to credit card scheme fees, rules or practices may harm our business.

We partially rely on card issuers or card schemes to process our transactions and must pay a fee for this service. From time to time, card schemes such as MasterCard and Visa may increase the interchange fees that they charge for each transaction using one of their cards. Credit card processors have the right to pass any increases in interchange fees on to us as well as increase their own fees for processing. In addition, card schemes have imposed and may again impose special assessments for transactions that are executed through a “digital wallet,” and these fees could particularly affect us and significantly increase our costs. These increased fees increase our operating costs and reduce our profit margins.

We are also required by credit card schemes to comply with their operating rules. The credit card schemes and their member banks set and interpret these rules. The bank accounts offered by those member banks compete with our digital account services. Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Elo or other credit card companies could adopt new operating rules or reinterpret existing rules that we or our processors might find difficult or even impossible to follow. As a result, we could lose our ability to provide our customers the option of using credit cards to fund their payments and our users the option to pay their fees using a credit card. If we were unable to accept credit cards, our business would be seriously harmed.

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We could lose the right to accept credit cards or could be required to pay fines if credit card schemes such as MasterCard or Visa determine that users are using our platform to engage in illegal or “high risk” activities, or if users generate a large volume of chargebacks related to fraudulent transactions. Additionally, we may be unable to access financing in the credit and capital markets at reasonable rates to fund our operations and for that reason our profitability and total transaction business could decline significantly.

We might not successfully implement strategies to increase adoption of our digital payment methods, which would limit our growth.

Our future profitability will depend, in part, on our ability to successfully implement our strategy to increase adoption of our digital payment methods. We cannot assure you that the market for digital payments will continue to grow or will remain viable. We expect to invest substantial amounts to:

•drive consumer and merchant awareness of digital payments;

•encourage consumers and merchants to sign up for and use our digital payment products;

•enhance our infrastructure to handle seamless processing of transactions;

•continue to develop state of the art, easy-to-use technology;

•expand our operations;

•increase the number of users who collect and pay digitally; and

•grow and diversify our customer base.

Despite these investments, we may fail to implement these programs successfully or to increase substantially the number of customers who pay for our digital payment methods. This would hold back any growth in our revenues and harm our business.

If we fail to establish and maintain proper and effective internal controls over financial reporting, our results of operations and our ability to operate our business may be harmed.

We are subject to the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, which requires, among other things, that we establish and maintain effective internal controls over financial reporting and disclosure controls and procedures. Under the SEC’s current rules, we have been required to perform system and process evaluation and testing of our internal controls over financial reporting to allow management to assess the effectiveness of our internal controls since 2018. Our testing may reveal deficiencies in our internal controls that are deemed to be material weaknesses or significant deficiencies and render our internal controls over financial reporting ineffective. If we are not able to comply with these requirements in a timely manner, or if we or our management identifies material weaknesses or significant deficiencies in our internal controls over financial reporting that are deemed to be material weaknesses, the market price of our Class A common shares may decline and we may be subject to investigations or sanctions by the SEC, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc., or FINRA, or other regulatory authorities. In addition, we may be required to expend significant management time and financial resources to correct any material weaknesses that may be identified or to respond to any regulatory investigations or proceedings.

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Our operating results are affected by decreases in consumer discretionary spending. Changes in macroeconomic conditions may reduce the volume and prices of transactions on our payments platforms and harm our growth strategies and business prospects.

Our operating results are affected by the condition of the economy in Brazil and other countries around the world. Our business and financial performance may be harmed by current and future economic conditions that cause a decline in business and consumer spending, including a reduction in the availability of credit, increased unemployment levels, higher energy and fuel costs, rising interest rates, financial market volatility, and recession. These factors have been adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic in Brazil, which has caused increases in unemployment rates, inflation rates and energy and fuel costs, and interest rates, as well as significant financial market volatility. Recently, adverse developments in the financial services industry have caused instability and uncertainty for market outlooks. In March 2023, Silicon Valley Bank was closed by authorities and other financial institutions have also faced similar difficulties. Additionally, in March 2023, UBS entered into advanced negotiations to acquire Credit Suisse for a reported total of approximately US$3 billion after Credit Suisse faced further financial difficulties resulting from investor and customer uncertainty and liquidity and operational concerns, coupled with the effects and market turmoil caused by the Silicon Valley Bank closure. We cannot predict how the global economic outlook will continue to develop as a result of these recent developments or whether there will be additional bank closures, collapses or failures in the financial services industry, which may cause an adverse impact on macroeconomic conditions and the financial services industry, and consequently, affect our business and results of operations.

Furthermore, geopolitical instability arising from conflicts, such as the ongoing war in Ukraine, and the resulting imposition of sanctions, taxes or tariffs against Russia and Russia’s response to such sanctions (including retaliatory acts, such as cyberattacks and sanctions against other countries) could adversely affect the global economy or specific international, regional and domestic markets, including the Brazilian market. Such events could have an adverse effect on our business and financial performance through increased worldwide inflation, greater compliance costs, higher volatility in foreign currency exchange rates, destabilized supply chains and further market disruptions, including from cyberattacks targeting technologies that we rely on or the markets in which we or our customers operate.

As a business that depends on consumer discretionary spending, we may suffer harm if our merchants’ customers reduce their purchases due to continued job losses, foreclosures, bankruptcies, higher consumer debt and interest rates, reduced access to credit, lower consumer confidence, uncertainty or changes in tax policies and tax rates. Decreases in customer traffic or average value per transaction negatively affect our financial performance, and a prolonged period of depressed consumer spending could seriously harm our business. Promotional activities and decreased demand for consumer products, including higher-end products, could affect our profitability. The potential effects of the ongoing economic crisis in Brazil are difficult to forecast and mitigate. Any of the foregoing could seriously harm our business, results of operations and financial condition and could cause the trading price of our Class A common shares to decline.

A failure to comply with export controls or economic sanctions laws and regulations could have a material adverse impact on our results of operations, financial condition and reputation.

We face risks related to compliance with export controls (which can apply to software and technology) and economic sanctions laws and regulations, including those administered by the United Nations, the European Union and the United States, including the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control. Economic sanctions programs, if applicable, would restrict our dealings with certain sanctioned countries, territories, individuals and entities. Export controls restrict the export or transfer of certain goods, technology, and software to certain end-users or locations. Economic sanctions and export controls are complex, frequently changing, and often increase in number, and may impose incremental prohibitions, fines, restrictions on dealings with or involving additional countries, territories, individuals, entities or items or compliance obligations on our dealings in certain countries and territories or involving certain items. We may not be successful in ensuring compliance with limitations or restrictions on business with companies in any sanctioned countries and/or other sanctions targets, and we could potentially become targeted by sanctions as a result of such business even where such business was conducted in compliance with applicable laws and regulations. If we are found to be in violation of applicable sanctions or export controls laws or regulations or to have engaged in sanctionable conduct, we may face criminal or civil fines or other penalties, we may suffer reputational harm and our results of operations and financial condition may be adversely affected.

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Additionally, there can be no assurance that our employees, directors, officers, partners or any third parties that we do business with, including, among others, any distributors or suppliers, will not violate sanctions or export controls laws and regulations or engage in sanctionable conduct. We may ultimately be held responsible for any such violation of sanctions or export controls laws and regulations, or sanctionable conduct, by these persons, which could result in criminal or civil fines or other penalties, have a material adverse impact on our results of operations and financial condition and damage our reputation.

Customer complaints or negative publicity about our customer service could reduce usage of our products and, as a result, our business could suffer.

Customer complaints or negative publicity about our customer service could severely diminish consumer confidence in and use of our products. Breaches of our customers’ privacy and our security measures could have the same effect. Measures we sometimes take to combat risks of fraud and breaches of privacy and security, such as freezing customer funds, can damage relations with our customers. These measures heighten the need for prompt and accurate customer service to resolve irregularities. Effective customer service requires significant expenses, which, if not managed properly, could affect our profitability significantly. Any inability by us to manage or train our customer service representatives properly could compromise our ability to handle customer complaints effectively. If we do not handle customer complaints effectively, our reputation may suffer and we may lose our customers’ confidence.

We are susceptible to illegal or improper uses of our platform, which could expose us to additional liability and harm our business.

We, like our platforms, are susceptible to potentially illegal or improper uses. These may include illegal online gambling, fraudulent sales of goods or services, illicit sales of prescription medications or controlled substances, software and other intellectual property piracy, money laundering, bank fraud, cyberattacks, child pornography, trafficking, terrorist financing, prohibited sales of alcoholic beverages and tobacco products and online securities fraud. The owners of intellectual property rights or government authorities may seek to bring legal action against us if our platform is used for the sale of infringing items. These claims could result in reputational harm and any resulting liabilities, loss of transaction volume or increased costs could harm our business.

In addition, our services could be subject to unauthorized credit card use, identity theft, employee fraud or other internal security breaches. We may incur significant costs to protect against the threat of information security breaches or to respond to or alleviate problems caused by any breaches. Laws may require us to notify regulators, customers or employees of security breaches and we may be required to reimburse customers or banks for any funds stolen because of any breaches or to provide credit monitoring or identity theft protection in the event of a privacy breach. These requirements, as well as any additional restrictions that may be imposed by credit card companies, could raise our costs significantly and reduce our attractiveness.

In addition to the direct costs of such losses, if they are related to credit card transactions and become excessive they could result in us losing the right to accept credit cards for payment. Since credit cards are the most widely used method for our customers to pay for the products we sell, our business will be harmed if we are unable to accept credit cards.

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Unauthorized disclosure of sensitive or confidential customer information or our failure or the perception by our customers that we failed to comply with privacy laws or properly address privacy concerns could harm our business and standing with our customers.

We collect, store, process, and use certain personal information and other user data in our business. A significant risk associated with e-commerce and communications is the secure transmission of confidential information over public networks. The perception of privacy concerns, whether or not valid, may harm our business and results of operations. We must ensure that all processing, collection, use, storage, dissemination, transfer and disposal of data for which we are responsible comply with relevant data protection and privacy laws. The protection of our customer, employee and company data is critical to us. Currently, a number of our users authorize us to bill their credit card accounts directly. We rely on commercially available systems, software, tools and monitoring to provide secure processing, transmission and storage of confidential customer information, such as credit card and other personal information. Despite the security measures, we have in place, our facilities and systems, and those of our third-party service providers, may be vulnerable to security breaches, acts of vandalism, computer viruses, misplaced or lost data, programming or human errors, or other similar events. For example, in 2021, we experienced a cyberattack that targeted our subsidiary MOIP. For more information about that incident, see “Our business is subject to cyberattacks and security and privacy breaches.” We continue to monitor and review, on an ongoing basis, our IT systems, policies and security in an effort to avoid or remedy weaknesses, vulnerabilities or deficiencies. For more information, see “Item 4. Information on the Company—Protecting Our Clients—2021 MOIP Cybersecurity Incident.”

Any future security breach, or any perceived failure involving the misappropriation, loss or other unauthorized disclosure of confidential information, as well as any failure or perceived failure to comply with laws, policies, legal obligations or industry standards regarding data privacy and protection, whether by us or our vendors, could damage our reputation, expose us to litigation risk and liability, subject us to negative publicity, disrupt our operations and harm our business. Our security measures and remedial actions to address past cyberattacks may fail to prevent future security breaches, which could harm our business and financial results.

We have only a limited ability to protect our intellectual property rights, which are important to our success.

We believe the protection of our intellectual property, including our trademarks, patents, copyrights, domain names, trade dress, and trade secrets, is critical to our success. We seek to protect our intellectual property rights by relying on applicable laws and regulations, as well as a variety of administrative procedures. We also rely on contractual restrictions to protect our proprietary rights when offering or procuring products and services, including confidentiality agreements with parties with whom we conduct business.

However, contractual arrangements and other steps we have taken to protect our intellectual property may not prevent third parties from infringing or misappropriating our intellectual property or deter independent development of equivalent or superior intellectual property rights by others. Trademark, copyright, patent, domain name, trade dress and trade secret protection are expensive to maintain and may require litigation. Protecting our intellectual property rights and other proprietary rights is expensive and time-consuming and may not be successful in every jurisdiction. Also, we may not be able to discover or determine the extent of any unauthorized use of our proprietary rights. We have licensed certain of our proprietary rights, such as trademarks or copyrighted material, to others in the past, and expect to do so in the future. These licensees may take actions that diminish the value of our proprietary rights or harm our reputation. Any failure to protect or enforce our intellectual property rights adequately, or significant costs incurred in doing so, could materially harm our business.

As the number of products in the software industry increases and the functionalities of these products further overlap, and as we acquire technology through acquisitions or licenses, we may become increasingly subject to infringement claims, including patent, copyright, and trademark infringement claims. We may be required to enter into litigation to determine the validity and scope of the patents or other intellectual property rights of others. The ultimate outcome of any allegation is uncertain and, regardless of the outcome, any such claim, with or without merit, may be time-consuming, result in costly litigation, divert management’s time and attention from our business, require us to stop selling, delay shipping, or redesign our products, or require us to pay substantial amounts to satisfy judgments or settle claims or lawsuits or to pay substantial royalty or licensing fees, or to satisfy indemnification obligations that we have with some of our customers. Our failure to obtain necessary license or other rights, or litigation or claims arising out of intellectual property matters, may harm our business.

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If we continue to grow, we may not be able to appropriately manage the increased size of our business.

We are currently experiencing a period of significant expansion and anticipate that further expansion will be required to address potential growth in our customer base and market opportunities.

We must constantly add new hardware, update software, enhance and improve our billing and transaction systems, and add and train new engineers and other personnel to accommodate the increased use of our platforms and the new products and features we regularly introduce. This upgrade process is expensive, and the increasing complexity and enhancement of our website and mobile app results in higher costs. Failure to upgrade our technology, features, transaction processing systems, security infrastructure, or network infrastructure and customer channels or interfaces to accommodate increased traffic or transaction volume could harm our business. Adverse consequences could include unanticipated system disruptions, slower response times, degradation in levels of customer support, impaired quality of users’ experiences of our services and delays in reporting accurate financial information.

Our revenues depend on prompt and accurate transaction processes. Our failure to grow our transaction-processing capabilities to accommodate the increasing number of transactions that must be billed on our website would harm our business and our ability to collect revenue. Furthermore, we may need to enter into relationships with various strategic partners, websites and other online service providers and other third parties necessary to our business. The increased complexity of managing multiple commercial relationships could lead to execution problems that can affect current and future revenues, and operating margins.

We cannot assure you that our current and planned systems, procedures and controls, personnel and third-party relationships will be adequate to support our future operations. In addition, our current expansion has placed a significant strain on management and on our operational and financial resources, and this strain is expected to continue. Our failure to manage growth effectively could seriously harm our business, results of operations and financial condition.

BancoSeguro, PagSeguro Brazil and MOIP may have insufficient capital to meet the capital requirements of the CMN and the Central Bank.

Brazilian financial institutions must comply with the rules of the CMN and the Central Bank on capital adequacy, including minimum capital, which generally follow the Basel III regulatory framework. We cannot guarantee that BancoSeguro, upon increasing its operations, will have sufficient funds or resources available for its capitalization in the future, which could result in its inability to meet the capital adequacy requirements of the CMN and the Central Bank.

In addition, non-compliance with capital adequacy requirements may adversely affect BancoSeguro’s ability to distribute dividends and interest on equity to shareholders and may adversely affect its ability to operate and lend, which could cause BancoSeguro to sell its assets or take other measures that may adversely affect BancoSeguro’s, and consequently our, operating results and financial condition. If BancoSeguro were not able to comply with these capital adequacy requirements, regulators may impose sanctions on BancoSeguro, including administrative proceedings, fines, disqualification of directors and even withdrawal of authorization, which could have a material adverse effect on BancoSeguro’s, and consequently our, operations and financial conditions.

Moreover, the Central Bank recently enacted a set of new rules applicable to payment institutions, increasing the capital and prudential requirements to which we are subject. This framework includes Central Bank Resolutions No. 197/22, 198/22, 199/22, 200/22, 201/22 and 202/22, all issued on March 11, 2022. These new prudential requirements will be enforceable according to their respective implementation calendar, which states that the new rules will come into force in July 2023, and full implementation will take place in January 2025. We may be subject to more strict prudential requirements as a result of this new regulatory framework.

Under this new regulation, certain of the Brazilian operating entities in our Group structure composed of BancoSeguro, PagSeguro Brazil and MOIP, will be classified as a Type 3 conglomerate, which is defined as a prudential conglomerate led by a payment institution and integrated by a financial institution or other institution authorized to operate by the Central Bank subject to Law No. 4,595/64. For additional information, see “Item 4.—Regulation—Regulation of the Payment Industry in Brazil—Recent Developments on Regulatory Capital Requirements for Payment Institutions”.

If BancoSeguro, PagSeguro Brazil and MOIP are not able to comply with the new regulatory capital requirements, the Central Bank may impose sanctions on these entities, which could have a significant adverse effect on our operations and financial conditions.

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BancoSeguro’s, PagSeguro Brazil’s and MOIP’s businesses are highly dependent on the current Brazilian regulatory environment, and changes in regulation may affect our results and the development of our activities.

The Brazilian government has historically implemented or modified regulations that affect Brazilian financial institutions and payment institutions as part of its economic policy implementation. Such regulations are continuously modified by the Brazilian government to control credit availability and to reduce or increase consumption, among other objectives. Some of these controls are temporary in nature and may be modified from time to time in accordance with Brazilian government credit policies. Other controls have been introduced and have either remained stable or were gradually reduced. Such changes may adversely affect BancoSeguro’s, PagSeguro Brazil’s and MOIP’s, and consequently our, future operations and revenues.

The growth of our credit portfolio of transactions through BancoSeguro could increase the default rates in our total portfolio, and the systems and methods of identification, analysis, management and control of risks related to our customer portfolio could be insufficient to prevent losses.

BancoSeguro may expand its credit portfolio of transactions, increasing the origination and approval of new transactions, which could lead to an increase in late payments, default rates and expenses related to provisions, which would negatively affect our results of operations. Changes in interest rates and other variable market indexes could negatively affect our financial results. Our success depends on, among other factors, the balance between the risks and returns. We conduct credit checks on each of our customers to assess their risk profile, but we cannot assure you that our risk management systems will be sufficient to prevent losses from undetected risks in our customer portfolio, which could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition.

Our financial success is sensitive to the method consumers choose to make payments, since these methods differ in profitability. Our profitability could be harmed if there is an increase in the proportion of our business funded using less profitable methods.

In connection with our acquiring business, we pay transaction fees to card schemes, banks and other intermediaries that vary according to the method chosen by consumers to fund payment transactions. These transaction fees are higher when consumers fund payments using credit cards, and lower when consumers fund payments with debit cards. Transaction fees are nominal when customers fund payment transactions by digital transfer of funds from bank accounts, and we pay no fees when customers fund payment transactions from an existing PagSeguro account balance. Our financial success is therefore sensitive to changes in the proportion of our business funded by consumers using credit, debit and prepaid cards, which would increase our costs if we were unable to adjust the rates we charge our customers accordingly. Consumers may resist funding payments by digital transfers from bank accounts because of the incentives offered by credit cards, for example, or general concerns about providing bank account information to a third party.

In connection with our issuing business, we earn interchange revenues that vary according to the type of card that we issue to our customers (a credit, debit or prepaid card). These interchange fees are subject to the terms defined by the card schemes, and in certain cases, these fees may also be subject to terms defined by regulators. Thus, our business and financial condition may be negatively affected by the terms of interchange fees established by card schemes and regulators.

As our payments ecosystem, merchant services and banking solutions include both acquiring and issuing business activities, changes in interchange rates that may negatively affect one side of our business may also positively affect the other side of our business. However, we cannot ensure that this correlation will offset a negative overall impact on our business and financial condition because of such variations in interchange rates and payment methods utilization mix.

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We may face restrictions and penalties under the Brazilian Consumer Protection Code in the future.

Brazil has a series of strict consumer protection laws, referred to together as the Consumer Protection Code (Código de Defesa do Consumidor). These laws apply to all companies in Brazil that supply products or services to Brazilian consumers. They include protection against misleading and deceptive advertising, protection against coercive or unfair business practices and protection in the formation and interpretation of contracts, usually in the form of civil liabilities and administrative penalties for violations. These penalties are often levied by the Brazilian Consumer Protection Agencies (Fundação de Proteção e Defesa do Consumidor, or PROCONs), which oversee consumer issues on a district-by-district basis. Companies that operate across Brazil may face penalties from multiple PROCONs, as well as from the National Secretariat for Consumers (Secretaria Nacional do Consumidor, or SENACON). Companies may settle claims made by consumers via PROCONs by paying compensation for violations directly to consumers and through a mechanism that allows them to adjust their conduct, called a conduct adjustment agreement (Termo de Ajustamento de Conduta, or TAC). Brazilian Public Prosecutors may also commence investigations of alleged violations of consumer rights, and the TAC mechanism is also available as a sanction in those proceedings. Companies that violate TACs face potential automatic fines. Brazilian Public Prosecutors may also file public civil actions against companies who violate consumer rights, seeking strict observation of the consumer protection laws and compensation for any damages to consumers.

As of December 31, 2022, we had approximately 12,826 active judicial proceedings and proceedings with PROCONs and small claims courts relating to consumer rights. Most of these proceedings are related to consumer allegations of non-delivery of products by merchants and requests for withdrawal of digital account balances that were blocked by PagSeguro because they were under investigation for fraud or undergoing claim resolution. To the extent consumers file such claims against us in the future, we may be required to pay fines for non-compliance that could have a negative impact on our results of operations.

We are subject to regulatory activity and antitrust litigation under competition laws.

We receive scrutiny from various governmental agencies under competition laws. Other companies or governmental agencies may allege that our actions violate antitrust or competition laws, or otherwise constitute unfair competition. Contractual agreements with buyers, sellers, or other companies could give rise to regulatory action or antitrust investigations or litigation. Also, our unilateral business practices could give rise to regulatory action or antitrust investigations or litigation. Any such claims and investigations, even if they are unfounded, are usually very expensive to defend, involve negative publicity and substantial diversion of management time and effort, and could result in significant judgments against us.

Unfavorable outcomes in litigation or our inability to post judicial collateral or provide guarantees in pending legal or administrative proceedings could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We are defendants in a significant number of judicial proceedings, including indemnity, labor and tax proceedings. As of December 31, 2022, we have recorded R$58,848 million in provisions for current civil, labor and tax proceedings and no provisions for non-current proceedings. We have not recorded any provisions with respect to our proceedings in which our chance of loss has been deemed possible. We cannot guarantee that such proceedings will have favorable outcomes for us or that the provisions made will be sufficient to pay any amounts due. Any proceedings that require us to make substantial payments, affect our reputation or otherwise interfere with our business operations could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and operating results.

Additionally, we may not have sufficient funds to post collateral or provide guarantees in judicial or administrative proceedings that claim substantial amounts. Even if we do not post such collateral or provide guarantees, we will be liable for paying any amounts due pursuant to any unfavorable outcomes in legal proceedings. We cannot assure you that, if we cannot make such payments, our assets, including financial assets, will not be attached, or that we will be able to obtain tax good standing certificates, all of which may have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

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We may pursue strategic acquisitions or investments. The failure of an acquisition or investment to produce the anticipated results, or the inability to integrate an acquired company fully, could harm our business.

We may occasionally acquire or invest in complementary companies or businesses. The success of an acquisition or investment will depend on our ability to make accurate assumptions regarding the valuation, operations, growth potential, integration and other factors related to that business. We cannot assure you that our acquisitions or investments will produce the results that we expect at the time we enter into or complete a given transaction. Furthermore, acquisitions may result in difficulties integrating the acquired companies, and may result in the diversion of our capital and our management’s attention from other business issues and opportunities. We may not be able to successfully integrate the operations that we acquire, including their personnel, financial systems, distribution or operating procedures. If we fail to integrate acquisitions successfully, our business could suffer. In addition, the expense of integrating any acquired business and their results of operations may negatively impact our operating results.

Our developer platforms, which are open to merchants and third-party developers, subject us to additional risks.

We provide third-party developers with access to application programming interfaces, software development kits and other tools designed to allow them to produce applications for use, with a particular focus on mobile applications. There can be no assurance that merchants or third-party developers will develop and maintain applications and services on our open platforms on a timely basis or at all. A number of factors could cause them to curtail or stop development for our platforms. In addition, our business is subject to many regulatory restrictions, and violations related to our developer platforms could negatively affect our operations and financial results.

We are a holding company and do not have any material assets other than the shares of our subsidiaries.

We are a Cayman Islands exempted company with limited liability. Our material assets are our direct and indirect equity interests in our subsidiaries, particularly PagSeguro Brazil, our Brazilian operating company, which we refer to as PagSeguro Brazil. We are, therefore, dependent upon payments, dividends and distributions from our subsidiaries for funds to pay our operating and other expenses and to pay future cash dividends or distributions, if any, to holders of our Class A common shares or Class B common shares, and we may have tax costs in connection with any dividend or distribution. Furthermore, exchange rate fluctuations will affect the U.S. dollar value of any distributions our subsidiaries make with respect to our equity interests in those subsidiaries. See “Risks Relating to Brazil—The Brazilian government has exercised, and continues to exercise, significant influence over the Brazilian economy. This involvement as well as Brazil’s political and economic conditions could harm us and the price of our Class A common shares,” “Risks Relating to Our Class A Common Shares—We have not adopted a dividend policy with respect to future dividends. If we do not declare any dividends in the future, you will have to rely on price appreciation of our Class A common shares in order to achieve a return on your investment.” and “Item 10. Additional Information—Memorandum and Articles of Association—Dividends and Capitalization of Profits.”

An occurrence of a natural disaster, widespread health epidemic or pandemic or other outbreaks could seriously harm our business and results of operations. Furthermore, the spread of communicable diseases such as the COVID-19 outbreak on a global scale may affect investment sentiment, cause disruptions and result in sporadic volatility in global markets. As a result, the Brazilian economy and outlook may be affected, and consequently, our business and trading price of our common shares could be adversely affected.

Natural disasters, such as fires or floods, the outbreak of a widespread health epidemic, or pandemic such as the outbreak of COVID-19, or other events, such as wars, acts of terrorism, political events, environmental accidents, power shortages or communication interruptions could seriously harm our business. The occurrence of a disaster or similar event could materially disrupt our business and operations. These events could also cause us to close our operating facilities temporarily, which would severely disrupt our operations and seriously harm our business and results of operations. In addition, our net sales could be significantly reduced to the extent that a natural disaster, health epidemic, pandemic or other major event harms the economy of Brazil or any other jurisdictions where we may operate. Our operations could also be severely disrupted if our customers, merchants or other participants were affected by natural disasters, health epidemics or pandemic or other major events.

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As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, we implemented a hybrid remote working arrangement for our employees which could adversely affect our ability to execute our business plans and operations. Should, for example, a natural disaster, power outage, connectivity issue or any other similar event impact our employees’ ability to work remotely, it could be difficult or even impossible to maintain our business activities for a substantial period. In addition, remote working may amplify certain risks to our businesses due to increased demand for information technology resources combined with increased risk of “phishing” frauds and other cybersecurity attacks, increased risk of unauthorized dissemination of sensitive personal or confidential information and increased risk of business interruptions.

For further information about the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our operations, see “Item 5-Operating and Financial Review and Prospects-Brazilian political environment and macroeconomic conditions, interest rates, consumer credit, consumer spending and responses to the COVID-19 pandemic”.

Risks Relating to Brazil

The Brazilian government has exercised, and continues to exercise, significant influence over the Brazilian economy. This involvement as well as Brazil’s political and economic conditions could harm us and the price of our Class A common shares.

The Brazilian government frequently exercises significant influence over the Brazilian economy and occasionally makes significant changes in policy and regulations. The Brazilian government’s actions to control inflation and other policies and regulations have often involved, among other measures, increases in interest rates, changes in tax policies, price controls, foreign exchange rate controls, currency devaluations, capital controls and limits on imports. We have no control over and cannot predict what measures or policies the Brazilian government may take in the future. We and the market price of our securities may be harmed by changes in Brazilian government policies, as well as general economic factors, including, without limitation:

•growth or downturn of the Brazilian economy;

•interest rates and monetary policies;

•exchange rates and currency fluctuations;

•inflation;

•liquidity of the domestic capital and lending markets;

•import and export controls;

•exchange controls and restrictions on remittances abroad;

•modifications to laws and regulations according to political, social and economic interests;

•fiscal policy and changes in tax laws;

•economic, political and social instability, particularly in light of the uncertainties involving the administration of new president Mr. Lula da Silva;

•labor and social security regulations; and

•other political, social and economic developments in or affecting Brazil.

In 2023, the Brazilian government is expected to address two important issues, the tax system reform and the approval of a new fiscal framework, which depending on the content of such reforms and proposals, may affect the macroeconomic prospects of the country. We cannot predict what measures the Brazilian government will take in the face of mounting macroeconomic pressures or otherwise. Uncertainty over whether the Brazilian government will implement changes in policy or regulation affecting these or other factors in the future may affect economic performance and contribute to economic uncertainty in Brazil, which may have an adverse effect on us and our Class A common shares. Recent economic and political instability has led to a negative perception of the Brazilian economy and higher volatility in the Brazilian securities markets, which also may adversely affect us and our Class A common shares.

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Recent economic and political uncertainty regarding the monetary policy, a turbulent government transition and the content of the new fiscal framework yet to be decided and approved has led to higher volatility in the Brazilian securities markets, which also may adversely affect us and our Class A common shares. See “Item 5. Operating and Financial Review and Prospects—Principal Factors Affecting Our Financial Condition and Results of Operations —Brazilian political environment and macroeconomic conditions, interest rates, consumer credit and consumer spending.”

Ongoing political instability may adversely affect our business, results of operations and the trading price of our Class A common shares.

The recent economic instability in Brazil due to uncertainties related to the Mr. Lula da Silva’s administration and new governmental fiscal and monetary guidelines has contributed to an decrease in market confidence and an increase in market volatility. The outlines of the proposed new fiscal framework and the tax reform, along with other political and economic developments, may lead to other declines in market confidence, in the Brazilian economy and a crisis in government.

For 2023, the economic outlook continues to face significant uncertainties. After recording a 5.0% growth in GDP in 2021, which was driven by the reopening of the economy after social restrictions imposed by the government were lifted in response to the easing of the effects caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Brazilian economy began to show signs of deceleration, especially in the second half of 2022, resulting in a 2.9% growth in GDP in 2022. As of January 2023, according to the IMF, Brazil’s GDP growth rate for 2023 is estimated to be 1.2% growth, as a result of the contraction in the credit market due to high interest rates, persistent high rates of inflation and the worsening of family and business confidence indicators. In addition, the uncertainty in global markets caused by the ongoing war in Ukraine and the most recent crisis in the U.S. and Europe banking system may contribute to lower rates of GDP growth.

In addition, various investigations into allegations of money laundering and corruption being conducted by the Office of the Brazilian Federal Prosecutor, including the largest such investigation, known as “Operação Lava Jato,” have continued to negatively impact the Brazilian economy and political environment.

Under “Operação Lava Jato” members of the Brazilian government and of the legislative branch, as well as senior officers of large state-owned and private companies, have faced allegations and, in certain cases, convictions, or, also, entering into plea bargains, related to crimes of political corruption, involving alleged bribes by means of kickbacks on contracts granted by the government to several infrastructure, oil and gas and construction companies. The profits of these kickbacks allegedly financed the political campaigns of political parties of the government that were unaccounted for or not publicly disclosed, in addition to alleged personal enrichment of the recipients of the bribes and the favoring of companies in contracts with the Brazilian government. Furthermore, certain of these companies have been investigated, and, in certain cases, being convicted by the competent authorities, such as the CVM, the SEC and the United States Department of Justice. Certain of these companies have chosen to enter into leniency agreements with the competent authorities, when possible. The outcome of these investigations, convictions, plea bargaining and leniency agreements have had an adverse impact on the image and reputation of the implicated companies, political parties and on the general market perception of the Brazilian economy and political environment.

Although “Operação Lava Jato” was formally closed by the Office of the Brazilian Federal Prosecutor on February 1, 2021, we cannot predict whether such investigations will lead to further political and economic instability or whether new allegations against government officials, officers or companies will arise in the future. In addition, we cannot predict the outcome of any such investigations or allegations nor their effect on the Brazilian economy. Mr. Lula da Silva, began serving a 12-year prison sentence on corruption and money laundering charges in April 2018, but he was released from prison in November 2019 following a Brazilian Federal Supreme Court ruling. The Brazilian Federal Supreme Court (Supremo Tribunal Federal) annulled the criminal convictions against Mr. Lula da Silva and reinstated his political rights, enabling him to run for president in the elections that took place in October 2022, which he won against the former president, Mr. Jair Bolsonaro. Historically, in election years, especially presidential elections, levels of foreign investment in Brazil are reduced, and political uncertainty creates greater instability and volatility in the domestic economy. In summary. the impact of the 2022 presidential election on the Brazilian economy is uncertain and may adversely affect our operations and financial results. The president of Brazil has the power to determine policies and issue governmental acts related to the conduct of the Brazilian economy and, consequently, affect the operations and financial performance of companies like ours. We cannot predict which policies Mr. Lula da Silva will adopt, or whether such policies or changes in current policies could adversely affect us or the Brazilian economy.

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With the end of certain checks and balances on government spending in 2022, a federal budget deficit is expected for 2023. In 2022, the nominal expansion of GDP contributed to an increase in nominal tax revenues as a result of inflation, a return of in person working, record commodity prices and a series of short term measures adopted in Brazil (increase in the social aid program “Auxílio Brasil”, anticipation of the 13rd salary, availability of R$1,000 from labor security funds (FGTS) and other measures). With the end of such efficiency gains, the Proposed Federal Government’s Budget Law (Projeto de Lei Orçamentária Anual) predicts a deficit of around R$60 billion in 2023, but that number may be underestimated, considering that the estimated deficit does not reflect certain ongoing subsidies in 2023 (i.e. Auxílio Brasil and readjustments in income tax brackets). In addition, government projections for the public debt trends in the next decade are more optimistic when compared to market projections. Actual economic performance is highly dependent on Brazil’s GDP growth.

Brazil’s Federal Government is expected to run a budget deficit for 2023 and in the years going forward. In 2022, the budget surplus was R$54.1 billion, significantly above the budget deficit that was approved in the 2022 budget bill. In January 2023, the Brazilian Federal Government approved the 2023 budget bill, which stipulated a R$231.5 billion deficit, but the Ministry of Finance has already announced a package of measures aimed at reducing this amount to around R$100 billion, which is closer to the forecasts of market analysts. We cannot predict the impact of the budget deficit on the Brazilian economy. Despite political and economic instability in 2021 and 2022, consumer confidence improved in Brazil. The Getulio Vargas Foundation Confidence Consumer Index presented an increase of 12.5 points from 75.5 points in 2021 to 88.0 points in 2022, which potentially reflects the slowdown in inflation and the improvement of the job market in Brazil, caused by a reduction in the unemployment rate and income recovery throughout the year.

We cannot predict which policies the Brazilian federal government may adopt or change or the effect that any such policies might have on our business or on the Brazilian economy. Any such new policies or changes to current policies may have a material adverse impact on our business, results of operations, financial condition and prospects. Worsening political and economic conditions in Brazil may increase production and supply chain costs and adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition. Uncertainty as to whether the Brazilian government will implement changes in policies or regulations affecting these or other factors in the future may contribute to economic uncertainty in Brazil and to heightened volatility in our business.

Inflation and certain measures by the Brazilian government to curb inflation have historically harmed the Brazilian economy and Brazilian capital markets, and high levels of inflation in the future would harm our business and the price of our Class A common shares.

In the past, Brazil has experienced extremely high rates of inflation. Inflation and some of the measures taken by the Brazilian government in an attempt to curb inflation have had significant negative effects on the Brazilian economy generally. Inflation, policies adopted to curb inflationary pressures and uncertainties regarding possible future governmental intervention have contributed to economic uncertainty and heightened volatility in the Brazilian capital markets.

According to the IPCA, Brazilian inflation rates are 5.60%, as of February 2023 considering the accumulated inflation over the prior 12-month period, and were 5.79%, 10.06% and 4.52% in 2022, 2021 and 2020, respectively. Brazil may experience high levels of inflation in the future and inflationary pressures may lead to the Brazilian government’s intervening in the economy and introducing policies that could harm our business and the price of our Class A common shares. In the past, the Brazilian government’s interventions included the maintenance of a restrictive monetary policy with high interest rates that restricted credit availability and reduced economic growth, causing volatility in interest rates. For example, the SELIC (Sistema Especial de Liquidação e de Custódia), the Central Bank’s overnight rate, as established by the Monetary Policy Committee (Comitê de Política Monetária do Banco Central do Brasil), or COPOM, was 13.75% p.a., 9.25% p.a. and 2.0% p.a. in 2022, 2021 and 2020, respectively. As of March 31, 2023, the SELIC rate was 13.75% p.a.. Conversely, with the Brazilian government that has been focused on COVID-19 related stimulus, Central Bank policies and severe interest rate fluctuations have triggered and may continue to trigger increases in inflation, and, consequently, growth volatility and the need for sudden and significant additional interest rate increases, which could negatively affect us and increase our indebtedness.

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Exchange rate instability may have adverse effects on the Brazilian economy, us and the price of our Class A common shares.

The Brazilian currency has been historically volatile and has been devalued frequently over the past three decades. Throughout this period, the Brazilian government has implemented various economic plans and used various exchange rate policies, including sudden devaluations, periodic mini-devaluations (during which the frequency of adjustments has ranged from daily to monthly), exchange controls, dual exchange rate markets and a floating exchange rate system. Although long-term depreciation of the real is generally linked to the rate of inflation in Brazil, depreciation of the real occurring over shorter periods of time has resulted in significant variations in the exchange rate between the real, the U.S. dollar and other currencies. The real/U.S. dollar exchange rate reported by the Central Bank was R$3.9048 per U.S. dollar on December 31, 2015, and R$3.2591 per U.S. dollar on December 31, 2016, reflecting a 16.4% nominal appreciation of the real against the U.S. dollar. Between year-end 2016 and year-end 2017, the real remained relatively stable, depreciating 1.5% against the U.S. dollar in nominal terms. Between year-end 2017 and 2018, the real depreciated greatly, by 16.9%, against the U.S. dollar, primarily as a result of (i) global U.S. dollar appreciation and the pressure on long-term interest rates in the U.S., (ii) an increase in Brazil’s risk premium, and (iii) lower interest rates in Brazil, which reduced the volume of foreign currency deposited in Brazil in the “carry trade,” as well as uncertainty regarding the results of the Brazilian presidential elections held in October 2018. Between year-end 2018 and 2019, the real depreciated by 4.1% in nominal terms against the U.S. dollar, reaching R$4.0307 per U.S. dollar on December 31, 2019, primarily as a result of uncertainty regarding pension reform in Brazil and tensions in the US-China trade policy. The real depreciated significantly in 2020, by 28.9%, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the prospects for a global economic recession and a sharp increase in risk premiums, political crisis and volatility in financial markets. The real/U.S. dollar exchange rate reported by the Central Bank was R$5.1967 per U.S. dollar on December 31, 2020 and R$5.5805 per U.S. dollar on December 31, 2021, corresponding to a devaluation of 7.3% in nominal terms, after reaching record levels close to R$5.7500 per U.S. dollar during different times throughout the year. The real/U.S. dollar exchange rate reported by the Central Bank was R$5.5805 per U.S. dollar on December 31, 2021 and R$5.2171 per U.S. dollar on December 31, 2022, corresponding to a valuation of 6.5%. In early 2023, the exchange rate environment changed as a result of the economical effects of the ongoing war in Ukraine and the negative global supply scenario in addition to uncertainty surrounding the new Brazilian Federal Government intended policies and reforms. In addition, the increase in the SELIC interest rate over the past two years has also contributed to the strong appreciation of the real against the U.S. dollar. As of March 31, 2023, the exchange rate was R$5.0804 per U.S. dollar, reflecting an appreciation of 2.6% as compared to the 2022 year-end exchange rate. However, there is no guarantee that the Brazilian real will not appreciate further or depreciate again against the U.S. dollar, or against any other currency in the future, as a result of the expected market trends, such as the extreme uncertainty in the international economic environment, the volatility in the capital markets, as well as political, fiscal and electoral uncertainties in Brazil, especially with the new administration under Mr. Lula da Silva, who was elected in the last Brazilian election held in October 2022.

A devaluation of the real relative to the U.S. dollar could further exacerbate already intense create inflationary pressures in Brazil and cause the Brazilian government to, among other measures, continue to increase interest rates. Any depreciation of the real may generally restrict access to the international capital markets. It would also reduce the U.S. dollar value of our results. Restrictive macroeconomic policies could reduce the stability of the Brazilian economy and harm our results of operations and profitability. In addition, domestic and international reactions to restrictive economic policies could have a negative impact on the Brazilian economy. These policies and any reactions to them may harm us by curtailing access to foreign financial markets and prompting further government intervention. A devaluation of the real relative to the U.S. dollar may also, as in the context of the current economic slowdown, decrease consumer spending, increase deflationary pressures and reduce economic growth.

On the other hand, an appreciation of the real relative to the U.S. dollar and other foreign currencies may deteriorate the Brazilian foreign exchange current accounts. We and certain of our suppliers purchase goods and services from countries outside Brazil, and thus changes in the value of the U.S. dollar compared to other currencies may affect the costs of goods and services that we purchase. Depending on the circumstances, either devaluation or appreciation of the real relative to the U.S. dollar and other foreign currencies could restrict the growth of the Brazilian economy, as well as our business, results of operations and profitability.

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Infrastructure and workforce deficiency in Brazil may impact economic growth and have a material adverse effect on us.

Our performance depends on the overall health and growth of the Brazilian economy. Brazilian GDP growth has fluctuated over the past few years, experiencing a contraction of 3.3% in 2016, growth of 1.3% in 2017 and 1.8% in 2018, and growth of 1.2% in 2019. Due to the global economic downturn triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Brazilian economy in 2020 underwent a contraction of 3.3% in GDP. At the end of 2020 and especially during the beginning of 2021, government stimulus packages, credit growth, and the gradual reopening of the retail and services industries allowed the economy to recover, which intensified at the end of 2021, after the successful vaccination campaign against COVID-19, leading to GDP growth of 5.0% in 2021. In 2022, despite a slowdown in the economic recovery, the services sector was primarily responsible for a 2.9% GDP growth. At the beginning of 2023, the available economic data indicates a stagnation of this recovery, caused by high inflation and interest rates, and the job market losing momentum. As of January 2023, according to the IMF, Brazil's GDP growth rate is expected to be 1.2% in 2023. Growth is limited by inadequate infrastructure, including potential energy shortages and deficient transportation, logistics and telecommunication sectors, the lack of a qualified labor force, and the lack of private and public investments in these areas, which limit productivity and efficiency. Any of these factors could lead to labor market volatility and generally impact income, purchasing power and consumption levels, which could limit growth and ultimately have a material adverse effect on us.

Developments and the perceptions of risks in other countries, including other emerging markets, the United States and Europe, may harm the Brazilian economy and the price of Brazilian securities, including the price of our Class A common shares.

The market for securities issued by Brazilian companies is influenced by economic and market conditions in Brazil and, to varying degrees, market conditions in other Latin American and emerging markets, as well as the United States, Europe and other countries. To the extent the conditions of the global markets or economy deteriorate, the business of Brazilian companies may be harmed. The weakness in the global economy has been marked by, among other adverse factors, lower levels of consumer and corporate confidence, decreased business investment and consumer spending, the ongoing war in Ukraine and its impact on the global economy and international relations, increased unemployment, reduced income and asset values in many areas, reduction of China’s growth rate, currency volatility and limited availability of credit and access to capital. Developments or economic conditions in other emerging market countries have at times significantly affected the availability of credit to Brazilian companies and resulted in considerable outflows of funds from Brazil, decreasing the amount of foreign investments in Brazil.

On March 11, 2020, the WHO declared the outbreak of COVID-19 to be a pandemic, leading government authorities throughout the world to determine the best practices for taking preventive measures and treating infected persons. Consequently, the COVID-19 outbreak resulted in various governments throughout the world imposing restrictions relating to the movement of people in order to contain the spread of the virus, including travel restrictions, social distancing mandates and lockdowns. For more information on risks relating to COVID-19, see “Risks Relating to our Business and Industry—An occurrence of a natural disaster, widespread health epidemic or pandemic or other outbreaks could seriously harm our business and results of operations. Furthermore, the spread of communicable diseases such as the COVID-19 outbreak on a global scale may affect investment sentiment, cause disruptions and result in sporadic volatility in global markets. As a result, the Brazilian economy and outlook may be affected, and consequently, our business and trading price of our common shares could be adversely affected.”

Crises and political instability in other emerging market countries, the United States, Europe or other countries, such as the global outbreak of COVID-19, could decrease investor demand for Brazilian securities, such as our Class A common shares. In June 2016, the United Kingdom had a referendum in which the majority voted to leave the European Union and on February 1, 2020, officially left the European Union. We have no control over and cannot predict the effect of the United Kingdom’s exit from the European Union nor over whether and to which effect any other member state will decide to exit the European Union in the future. On January 20, 2021, Joe Biden became the President of the United States. We have no control over and cannot predict the effect of Joe Biden’s administration or policies. These developments, including the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic and its economic effects in other countries, the ongoing war in Ukraine that escalated following the Russian invasion in early 2022, as well as potential crises and forms of political instability arising therefrom or any other as of yet unforeseen development, may harm our business and the price of our Class A common shares.

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Any further downgrading of Brazil’s credit rating could reduce the trading price of our Class A common shares.

We may be harmed by investors’ perceptions of risks related to Brazil’s sovereign debt credit rating. Rating agencies regularly evaluate Brazil and its sovereign ratings, which are based on a number of factors including macroeconomic trends, fiscal and budgetary conditions, indebtedness metrics and the perspective of changes in any of these factors.

Brazil has lost its investment grade sovereign debt credit rating with the three main U.S. based credit rating agencies, Standard & Poor’s, Moody’s and Fitch. Standard & Poor’s downgraded Brazil’s sovereign debt credit rating from BB+ to BB in February 2016 and further reduced it to BB- in January 2018 with a stable outlook. In December 2019, Standard & Poor’s reaffirmed the BB- rating, raising the outlook from stable to positive. However, in April 2020, Standard & Poor’s downgraded Brazil’s public debt rating outlook from positive to stable, citing Brazil’s decrease in GDP for 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and Brazil’s higher level of spending aimed at fighting COVID-19 and preventing mass layoffs. On November 2021, S&P reaffirmed Brazil’s BB- rating, with a stable outlook, based on the assumption that Brazil will be able to stabilize its recent increase in public debt. On June 2022, S&P reaffirmed Brazil’s BB- rating, with a stable outlook, based on a scenario of fiscal stability, moderate economic growth, high but declining inflation and solid foreign exchange reserves. However, the agency warns of the possibility of a future downgrade if Brazil fails to control its public spending.

In August 2015, Moody has placed Brazil’s Baa3 sovereign debt credit rating on review and downgraded Brazil’s sovereign credit rating in February 2016 to Ba2 with a negative outlook, citing the prospect for further deterioration in Brazil’s indebtedness figures amid a recession and challenging political environment. In April 2018, Moody has reaffirmed the Ba2 rating, but raised the outlook from negative to stable, citing expectations that the winner of the October 2018 presidential elections will pass fiscal reforms. In March 2020, Moody has maintained Brazil’s stable rating, citing that Brazil’s response to COVID-19 mitigates the severe impact on growth but at some fiscal cost, and that the deterioration of fiscal and debt metrics is expected to be temporary and limited to 2020 due to the shock of the COVID-19 pandemic. Moody’s reaffirmed Brazil’s Ba2 stable rating in February 2021. Since then, Moody has maintained this sub-investment grade rating on Brazil's sovereign credit, with a stable outlook. In a statement issued in April 2022, the agency characterized the Ba2 rating with a stable outlook as a vote of confidence for recent changes in monetary and fiscal frameworks and mentioned the robust foreign exchange reserves as supporting to country’s credit profile.

Fitch downgraded Brazil’s sovereign credit rating to BB with a negative outlook in May 2016, citing the country’s rapidly expanding budget deficit and worse-than-expected recession, and further downgraded Brazil’s sovereign debt credit rating in February 2018 to BB- with a stable outlook. In November 2019, Fitch reaffirmed the BB- rating. In April 2020, Fitch reported that the spread of COVID-19, the drop in commodity prices, tighter external funding conditions and falling domestic financial asset prices will weaken economic growth in Latin America substantially in 2020, compounding downward pressure on sovereign credit profiles in the region. In May 2020, Fitch maintained Brazil’s credit rating at BB-, but changed its outlook from stable to negative, citing the deterioration of Brazil’s fiscal and economic environment and that both could worsen due to political uncertainties, as well as uncertainties regarding the duration and intensity of the COVID-19 pandemic. In December 2021, Fitch reaffirmed Brazil's BB- ratings with a negative outlook. According to the agency, this outlook reflects downside risks to the economy and public finances, and the debt trajectory in the context of tightened financing conditions and increased doubts about the credibility of the established spending ceiling, which is Brazil’s main fiscal anchor, following changes to its calculation to make room for additional social spending. In December 2022, Fitch reaffirmed Brazil’s BB- ratings, but changed the outlook to ‘stable’, reflecting an expectation of slower growth and fiscal deterioration, but without a significant risk to broad economic stability.

Brazil’s sovereign credit rating is currently rated below investment grade by the three main credit rating agencies. Consequently the prices of securities issued by Brazilian companies have been negatively affected. A prolongation or worsening of the current Brazilian recession and continued political uncertainty, among other factors, could lead to further ratings downgrades. Any further downgrade of Brazil’s sovereign credit ratings could heighten investors’ perception of risk and, as a result, cause the trading price of our Class A common shares to decline.

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Internet regulation in Brazil is recent and still limited and several legal issues related to the internet are uncertain.

In 2014, Brazil enacted the Brazilian Civil Rights Framework for the Internet, setting forth principles, guarantees, rights and duties for the use of the internet in Brazil, including provisions about internet service provider liability, internet user privacy and internet neutrality. In May 2016, further regulations were passed in connection with the Brazilian Civil Rights Framework for the Internet. However, unlike in the United States, little case law exists around the Brazilian Civil Rights Framework for the Internet and existing jurisprudence has not been consistent. Furthermore, in 2018, Brazil enacted the LGPD, which became fully effective in 2020. The LGPD governs data owners’ rights – such as access to its data, correction of data (if incomplete, incorrect or out of date), erasure of data, with whom the data is shared, among others –, the legal basis that establish in which cases data can be processed, as well as fines and penalties applicable for non-compliant entities. For more information on risks regarding the LGPD, see “We are subject to risks associated with noncompliance with the General Data Protection Law and may be adversely affected by investing in measures to adapt to new laws, the imposition of fines and other types of penalties.” As was the case with the Brazilian Civil Rights Framework for the Internet, little case law exists regarding the LGPD since it only came into force in 2020. Legal uncertainty arising from the limited guidance provided by current laws in force allows for different judges or courts to decide very similar claims in different ways and establish contradictory jurisprudence. This legal uncertainty allows for rulings against us and could set adverse precedents, which individually or in the aggregate could seriously harm our business, results of operations and financial condition. In addition, legal uncertainty may harm our customers’ perception and use of our service.

Risks Relating to Our Class A Common Shares

UOL, our largest shareholder, owns 100% of our outstanding Class B common shares, which represent approximately 85.51% of the voting power of our issued share capital, and controls all matters requiring shareholder approval. This concentration of ownership and voting power limits your ability to influence corporate matters.

Our Class B common shares are entitled to 10 votes per share and our Class A common shares are entitled to one vote per share. Our Class B common shares are convertible into an equivalent number of Class A common shares and generally convert into Class A common shares upon transfer subject to limited exceptions. UOL controls our company and holds all of our outstanding Class B common shares, representing 36.79% of our issued share capital. As of March 31, 2023, UOL also held 799,804 of our outstanding Class A common shares. Because of the ten-to-one voting ratio between our Class B common shares and Class A common shares, these Class B common shares give UOL approximately 85.51% of the voting power of our issued share capital. UOL therefore controls the outcome of all decisions at our shareholders’ meetings, and is able to elect a majority of the members of our board of directors. It is also able to direct our actions in areas such as business strategy, financing, distributions, acquisitions and dispositions of assets or businesses. UOL’s decisions on these matters may be contrary to your expectations or preferences, and it may take actions that could be contrary to your interests. It will be able to prevent any other shareholders, including you, from blocking these actions. For further information regarding shareholdings in our company, see “Item 7. Major Shareholders and Related Party Transactions—Major Shareholders.”

If UOL sells or transfers any of its Class B common shares, they will generally convert automatically into Class A common shares, subject to limited exceptions, such as transfers to affiliates, to trustees for the holder or its affiliates and certain transfers to U.S. tax-exempt organizations. The fact that any Class B common shares convert into Class A common shares if UOL sells or transfers them means that UOL will in many situations continue to control a majority of the combined voting power of our outstanding share capital, due to the voting rights of any Class B common shares that it retains. If our Class B common shares at any time represent less than 10% of the combined voting power of our Class A common shares and Class B common shares together, however, the Class B common shares then outstanding will automatically convert into Class A common shares. For a description of the dual class structure, see “Item 10. Additional Information—Memorandum and Articles of Association.”

Class A common shares eligible for future sale may cause the market price of our Class A common shares to drop significantly.

The market price of our Class A common shares may decline because of sales of a large number of our Class A common shares in the market (including Class A common shares issuable upon conversion of Class B common shares) or the perception that these sales may occur. These sales, or the possibility that these sales may occur, also might make it more difficult for us to sell equity securities in the future at a time and at a price that we deem appropriate.

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As of December 31, 2022, we have outstanding 209,148,718 Class A common shares (including treasury shares) and 120,459,508 Class B common shares. All Class B common shares are beneficially owned by UOL. The Class A common shares sold in our October 2019 follow-on offering are freely tradable without restriction or further registration under the Securities Act by persons other than our affiliates within the meaning of Rule 144 of the Securities Act.

Our shareholders or entities controlled by them or their permitted transferees are able to sell their shares in the public market from time to time without registering them, subject to certain limitations on the timing, amount and method of those sales imposed by regulations promulgated by the SEC. If any of our shareholders, the affiliated entities controlled by them or their respective permitted transferees were to sell a large number of their Class A common shares, the market price of our Class A common shares may decline significantly. In addition, the perception in the public markets that sales by them might occur may also cause the trading price of our Class A common shares to decline.

We have not adopted a dividend policy with respect to future dividends. If we do not declare any dividends in the future, you will have to rely on price appreciation of our Class A common shares in order to achieve a return on your investment.

We have not adopted a dividend policy with respect to future dividends. The amount of any distributions will depend on many factors such as our results of operations, financial condition, cash requirements, prospects and other factors deemed relevant by our board of directors or, where applicable, our shareholders. Accordingly, if we do not declare dividends in the future, investors will most likely have to rely on sales of their Class A common shares, which may increase or decrease in value, as the only way to realize cash from their investment. There is no guarantee that the price of our Class A common shares will ever exceed the price that you pay.

We may raise additional capital in the future by issuing equity securities, which may result in a potential dilution of your equity interest.

We may issue additional equity securities to raise capital, make acquisitions, or for a variety of other purposes. Additional issuances of our shares may be made pursuant to the exercise or conversion of convertible debt securities, warrants, stock options or other equity incentive awards such as the LTIP and LTIP-Goals. Any strategic partnership, issuance or placement of shares or securities convertible into or exchangeable for shares may affect the market price of our shares and could result in dilution of your equity interest.

If securities or industry analysts do not publish research or reports about our business, or publish negative reports about our business, the market price and trading volume of our Class A common shares could decline.

The trading market for our Class A common shares depends in part on the research and reports that securities or industry analysts publish about us or our business. If one or more of the analysts who cover us downgrade our stock or publish inaccurate or unfavorable research about our business, our stock price would likely decline. If one or more of these analysts cease coverage of our company or fail to publish reports on us regularly, demand for our Class A common shares could decline, which might cause the market price and trading volume of our Class A common shares to decline.

Our dual class capital structure means our shares will not be included in certain indices. We cannot predict the impact this may have on our stock price.

In July 2017, S&P Dow Jones, a provider of widely followed stock indices, announced that companies with multiple share classes, such as ours, will not be eligible for inclusion in certain of their indices. As a result, our Class A common shares are not eligible for these stock indices. Many investment funds are precluded from investing in companies that are not included in such indices, and these funds would be unable to purchase our Class A common shares if we were not included in such indices. We cannot assure you that other stock indices will not take a similar approach to S&P Dow Jones in the future. Exclusion from indices could make our Class A common shares less attractive to investors and, as a result, the market price of our Class A common shares could be adversely affected.

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We are a Cayman Islands exempted company with limited liability. The rights of our shareholders may be different from the rights of shareholders governed by the laws of U.S. jurisdictions.

We are a Cayman Islands exempted company with limited liability. Our corporate affairs are governed by our Memorandum and Articles of Association of the Cayman Islands. The rights of shareholders and the responsibilities of members of our board of directors may be different from the rights of shareholders and responsibilities of directors in companies governed by the laws of U.S. jurisdictions. In the performance of its duties, the board of directors of a solvent Cayman Islands exempted company is required to consider the company’s interests, which is generally defined with reference to the interests of its shareholders (both present and future) as a whole, which may differ from the interests of one or more of its individual shareholders. See “Item 10. Additional Information—Memorandum and Articles of Association—Principal Differences between Cayman Islands and U.S. Corporate Law.”

Furthermore, the Cayman Islands enacted the International Tax Co-operation (Economic Substance) Act (As Revised), or the ESA, in January 2019. We are required to comply with the ESA and related regulations and guidelines. As we are a Cayman Islands company, compliance obligations include assessing its operations to determine the required compliance (if any) with the ESA, filing an annual notification with the Cayman Islands Registrar of Companies disclosing whether we are carrying out any relevant activities within the meaning of the Economic Substance Act and to the extent required under the ESA, the filing of an annual return with the Department of International Tax Co-Operation. Where applicable, we must establish that our operations satisfy the economic substance requirements of the ESA. We are required to monitor our operations to ensure it remains in compliance with all requirements under the ESA. Failure to satisfy these requirements may subject us to penalties under the ESA.

In February 2021, the Cayman Islands was added to the Financial Action Task Force, or FATF, list of jurisdictions whose anti-money laundering practices are under increased monitoring, commonly referred to as the FATF gray list. When the FATF places a jurisdiction under increased monitoring, it means the country has committed to resolve swiftly the identified strategic deficiencies within agreed timeframes and is subject to increased monitoring during that timeframe. In its February 2023 plenary, the FATF positively recognized the ongoing efforts of the Cayman Islands to improve its anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing regime. Despite the progress the Cayman Islands is making on satisfying the final outstanding recommendations (being considered as compliant or largely compliant with all of the FATF’s 40 recommendations and having completed 61 out of 63 FATF recommendation actions), it is still unclear how long this designation will remain in place and what ramifications, if any, the designation will have on us.

Furthermore, on March 13, 2022, the European Commission, or EC, updated its list of high-risk third countries, or the EU AML List, identified as having strategic deficiencies in their anti-money laundering/counter-terrorist financing regimes to add nine countries, including the Cayman Islands. The EC has noted it is committed to there being a greater alignment between the EU AML List and the FATF listing process. The addition of the Cayman Islands to the EU AML List is a direct result of the inclusion of the Cayman Islands on the FATF gray list in February 2021. It is unclear how long this designation will remain in place and what ramifications, if any, the designation will have on us.

Our shareholders may face difficulties in protecting their interests because we are a Cayman Islands exempted company.

Our corporate affairs are governed by our Memorandum and Articles of Association, by the Companies Act, and the common law of the Cayman Islands. The rights of our shareholders and the fiduciary responsibilities of our directors under the laws of the Cayman Islands are not as clearly defined as under statutes or judicial precedent in existence in jurisdictions in the United States. Therefore, you may have more difficulty protecting your interests than would shareholders of a corporation incorporated in a jurisdiction in the United States, due to the comparatively less prescriptive nature of Cayman Islands law in this area.

Cayman Islands statutory law in respect of schemes of arrangement does not specifically provide for shareholder appraisal rights in connection with a court sanctioned reorganization (by way of scheme of arrangement). This may make it more difficult for you to assess the value of any consideration you may receive in a merger or consolidation (which is affected by way of scheme of arrangement) or to require that the acquirer gives you additional consideration if you believe the consideration offered is insufficient. However, in respect of a merger or consolidation (which is not affected by way of scheme of arrangement), Cayman Islands statutory law, which permits a merger/consolidation without a court order, provides a mechanism for a dissenting shareholder in a merger or consolidation to require us to apply to the Grand Court of the Cayman Islands for a determination of the fair value of the dissenter’s shares if it is not possible for the company and the dissenter to agree on a fair price within the time limits prescribed.

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Shareholders of Cayman Islands exempted companies (such as us) have no general rights under Cayman Islands law to inspect corporate records and accounts or to obtain copies of lists of shareholders. Our directors have discretion under our Articles of Association to determine whether, and under what conditions, our corporate records may be inspected by our shareholders, but are not obliged to make them available to our shareholders. This may make it more difficult for you to obtain information needed to establish any facts necessary for a shareholder motion or to solicit proxies from other shareholders in connection with a proxy contest.

Subject to limited exceptions, under Cayman Islands law, a minority shareholder may not bring a derivative action against the board of directors. Class actions are not recognized in the Cayman Islands, but groups of shareholders with identical interests may bring representative proceedings, which are similar.

Our Memorandum and Articles of Association contain anti-takeover provisions that may discourage a third party from acquiring us and reduce the rights of holders of our Class A common shares.

Our Memorandum and Articles of Association contain certain provisions that could limit the ability of others to acquire our control, including a provision that grants authority to our board of directors to issue new shares in our company from time to time (including common shares and preferred shares) without action by our shareholders. These provisions could have the effect of depriving our shareholders of the opportunity to sell their Class A common shares at a premium over the prevailing market price by discouraging third parties from seeking to obtain our control in a tender offer or similar transactions. See “Item 10. Additional Information—Memorandum and Articles of Association—Anti-Takeover Provisions in our Memorandum and Articles of Association.”

United States civil liabilities and certain judgments obtained against us by our shareholders may not be enforceable.

PagSeguro Digital is a Cayman Islands exempted company and substantially all of our assets are located outside of the United States. In addition, all of our current directors and officers are residents of Brazil, and a substantial portion of their assets is located outside of the United States. As a result, it may be difficult to effect service of process within the United States upon these persons. It may also be difficult to enforce in U.S. courts judgments obtained in U.S. courts based on the civil liability provisions of the U.S. federal securities laws against us and those officers and directors.

Further, it is unclear if original actions predicated on civil liabilities based solely upon U.S. federal securities laws are enforceable in courts outside the United States, including in the Cayman Islands and Brazil. Courts of the Cayman Islands may not, in an original action in the Cayman Islands, recognize or enforce judgments of U.S. courts predicated upon the civil liability provisions of the securities laws of the United States or any state of the United States on the grounds that such provisions are penal in nature. Although there is no statutory enforcement in the Cayman Islands of judgments obtained in the United States, courts of the Cayman Islands will recognize a foreign judgment in personam of a court of competent jurisdiction and give a judgment based thereon if such judgment is final, for a liquidated sum, provided it is not in respect of taxes or a fine or penalty, is not inconsistent with a Cayman Islands’ judgment in respect of the same matters, and was not obtained in a manner which is contrary to the public policy of the Cayman Islands. In addition, a Cayman Islands court may stay proceedings if concurrent proceedings are being brought elsewhere.

Judgments of Brazilian courts to enforce our obligations with respect to our Class A common shares may be payable only in reais.

Most of our assets are located in Brazil. If proceedings are brought in the courts of Brazil seeking to enforce our obligations in respect of our Class A common shares, we may not be required to discharge our obligations in a currency other than the real. Under Brazilian exchange control laws, an obligation in Brazil to pay amounts denominated in a currency other than the real may only be satisfied in Brazilian currency at the exchange rate in effect on the date of the Brazilian Superior Court of Justice’s enforcement of the obligation. These amounts are then adjusted to reflect exchange rate variations through the effective payment date and, if applicable, eventual default interest. The exchange rate at that time may not afford non-Brazilian investors with full compensation for any claim arising out of or related to our obligations under the Class A common shares.

The judicial recognition process for foreign judgments before the Brazilian Superior Court of Justice may be time consuming and may also give rise to difficulties in enforcing such foreign judgment in Brazil. Accordingly, we cannot assure you that judicial recognition of a foreign judgment would be successful, that the judicial recognition process would be conducted in a timely manner or that a Brazilian court would enforce a judgment of non-Brazilian courts. Furthermore, upon its recognition by the Brazilian Superior Court of Justice, the enforcement of a foreign judgment would be delegated to a lower federal court.

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As a foreign private issuer, the disclosure requirements that we must comply with and other requirements are different from those applicable to U.S. domestic registrants.

As a foreign private issuer, the disclosure requirements that we must comply with and other requirements are different from those applicable to U.S. domestic registrants. For example, as a foreign private issuer for U.S. purposes, we are not subject to the same disclosure requirements as a domestic U.S. registrant under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, or the Exchange Act, including the requirements to prepare and issue quarterly reports on Form 10-Q or to file current reports on Form 8-K upon the occurrence of specified significant events, the proxy rules applicable to domestic U.S. registrants under Section 14 of the Exchange Act or the insider reporting and short-swing profit rules applicable to domestic U.S. registrants under Section 16 of the Exchange Act. In addition, we rely on exemptions from certain U.S. rules which permit us to follow Cayman Islands legal requirements rather than certain of the requirements that are applicable to U.S. domestic registrants.

We follow the Cayman Islands laws and regulations that are applicable to Cayman Islands companies. However, these laws and regulations do not contain any provisions comparable to the U.S. proxy rules, the U.S. rules relating to the filing of reports on Form 10-Q or 8-K or the U.S. rules relating to liability for insiders who profit from trades made in a short period of time, as referred to above.

Furthermore, foreign private issuers are required to file their annual report on Form 20-F within 120 days after the end of each fiscal year, while U.S. domestic issuers that are large, accelerated filers are required to file their annual report on Form 10-K within 60 days after the end of each fiscal year. Foreign private issuers are also exempt from Regulation Fair Disclosure, aimed at preventing issuers from making selective disclosures of material information. As a result of the above, even though we are required to file reports on Form 6-K disclosing the limited information that is material to us and which we make public pursuant to Cayman Islands law, or are required to distribute to shareholders generally, you may not receive information of the same type or amount that is required to be disclosed to shareholders of a U.S. company.

We cannot predict if investors will find our Class A common shares less attractive because we will rely on these exemptions. If some investors find our Class A common shares less attractive as a result, there may be a less active trading market for our Class A common shares and our share price may be more volatile.

PagSeguro Digital is a foreign private issuer and, as a result, in accordance with the listing requirements of the NYSE we rely on certain home country governance practices from the Cayman Islands, rather than the corporate governance requirements of the NYSE.

We report under the Exchange Act as a non-U.S. company with foreign private issuer status. The NYSE rules provide that foreign private issuers are permitted to follow home country practice in lieu of certain NYSE corporate governance standards. The standards applicable to us are considerably different from the standards applied to U.S. domestic issuers. For instance, we are not required to:

•have a majority of independent members on our board of directors (other than as may result from the requirements for the audit committee member independence under the Exchange Act);

•have a minimum of three members on our audit committee;

•have a compensation committee or a nominating and corporate governance committee;

•have regularly scheduled executive sessions of our board that consist of independent directors only; or

•adopt and disclose a code of business conduct and ethics for directors, officers and employees.

As a foreign private issuer, we may follow home country practice from the Cayman Islands in lieu of the above requirements. Therefore, the approach to governance adopted by our board of directors may be different from that of a board of directors consisting of a majority of independent directors, and, as a result, our management oversight may be more limited than if we were subject to all of the NYSE corporate governance standards. Accordingly, you may not have the same protections afforded to shareholders of companies that are not foreign private issuers.

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Although we do not expect to be a passive foreign investment company, or PFIC, for U.S. federal income tax purposes, there can be no assurance that we will not be a PFIC for any taxable year, which could subject United States investors in our shares to significant adverse U.S. federal income tax consequences.

We do not expect to be a PFIC for the current taxable year or any future year, based on our current business plans. However, whether we are a PFIC will be determined annually based upon the composition and nature of our income, the composition, nature and valuation of our assets (including goodwill), all of which are subject to change, and which may be determined in large part by reference to the market value of our shares, which may be volatile, and our corporate structure and the classification for U.S. federal income tax purposes of our subsidiaries. The determination of whether we are a PFIC will also depend upon the application of complex U.S. federal income tax rules concerning the classification of our assets (including goodwill) and income for this purpose, and the application of these rules is uncertain in some respects. Moreover, the determination of the value of our assets (including goodwill and certain intangible assets) may depend on our market capitalization, and that market capitalization may fluctuate. Accordingly, due to the lack of directly applicable authority regarding the foregoing, there can be no assurance that the IRS will not challenge any determination by us that we are not a PFIC.

If we were classified as a PFIC, special adverse U.S. federal tax rules would generally apply to a United States Holder (as defined in “Item 10. Additional Information—Taxation—U.S. Federal Income Tax Considerations”) that holds our Class A common shares. United States Holders are urged to consult their own tax advisors with respect to the potential tax consequences of the PFIC rules to their particular circumstances.

Our Class A common shares may not be a suitable investment for all investors, as investment in our Class A common shares presents risks and the possibility of financial losses.

The investment in our Class A common shares is subject to risks. Investors who wish to invest in our Class A common shares are thus subject to asset losses, including loss of the entire value of their investment, as well as other risks, including those related to our Class A common shares, the company, the sector in which we operate, our shareholders and the general macroeconomic environment in Brazil and all other countries in the world, among other risks.

Each potential investor in our Class A common shares must therefore determine the suitability of that investment in light of its own circumstances. In particular, each potential investor should:

•have sufficient knowledge and experience to make a meaningful evaluation of our Class A common shares, the merits and risks of investing in our Class A common shares and the information contained in this annual report;

•have access to, and knowledge of, appropriate analytical tools to evaluate, in the context of its particular financial situation, an investment in our Class A common shares and the impact our Class A common shares will have on its overall investment portfolio;

•have sufficient financial resources and liquidity to bear all of the risks of an investment in our Class A common shares;

•understand thoroughly the terms of our Class A common shares and be familiar with the behavior of any relevant indices and financial markets; and

•be able to evaluate (either alone or with the help of a financial advisor) possible scenarios for economic, interest rate and other factors that may affect its investment and its ability to bear the applicable risks.

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ITEM 4. INFORMATION ON THE COMPANY

Overview

We are a disruptive provider of financial technology solutions focused primarily on consumers, individual entrepreneurs, micro-merchants, small and medium-sized enterprises (SME), in Brazil, aiming to provide a safe, seamless, digital, mobile first and affordable ecosystem, combining payments and financial services, including, supporting, and empowering millions of Brazilians.

We are the only financial technology provider in Brazil whose business model covers all of the following pillars:

•full acquirer company, with a complete set of payment solutions through POS devices and e-commerce;

•digital platform with proprietary solutions for business management such as check-out, conciliation, split payments, product and inventory management, business reports, anti-fraud system and CRM;

•cross-border PSP in Latin America and Europe;

•multiple digital banking services, including checking account, savings account, card issuance, credit offerings, investments and insurance; and

•free digital accounts with several features such as bill payments, top ups for mobile prepaid phones and partners (Bilhete Único (urban mobility ticket for the city of São Paulo), Uber, Free Fire, iFood, Playstation, Steam, Xbox, Tinder, Minecraft, Razer Gold, Brazilian Mobile Telcos and Brazilian Pay-TV services), pix and wire transfers, marketplace, QR code payments, payroll portability and financial education.

Our end-to-end digital ecosystem enables our merchants not only to accept payments, but also to grow and manage their businesses. Before PagSeguro, many of these individual entrepreneurs, micro-merchants and SMEs were overlooked or underserved by incumbent payment providers and large financial institutions in Brazil. According to our proprietary research, in December 2022, 52% of merchants who own our entry-level mobile POS, mPOS, device, the Minizinha, did not accept card payments prior to signing up with PagSeguro.

Our digital banking ecosystem features our free PagBank digital account, under the brand PagBank, and offers 40 cash-in methods and 13 cash-out options.

Focusing primarily on individual entrepreneurs, micro-merchants and SMEs, we offer a range of POS and mPOS devices specifically designed to fit their business needs. Our devices offer competitive transaction fees and access to our end-to-end digital banking ecosystem with a free PagBank digital account, which is similar to a regular checking account. They span from our entry-level product, the Minizinha, to the Moderninha Smart. Unlike the incumbent payment providers in Brazil, who rent their POS devices to merchants, we innovated by allowing merchants to acquire their own POS device from us in 12 monthly installments. For the equivalent of three to six months of rental fees with the incumbents, merchants can have a comparable device from PagSeguro with a free PagBank digital account.

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Our digital banking ecosystem helps drive financial inclusion in Brazil providing business solutions primarily designed for consumers, individual entrepreneurs, micro-merchants and SMEs. Our main target markets include underserved clients and unbanked clients who have been ignored or underserved by the incumbents. Our digital banking ecosystem serves both consumers and merchants on a single platform. These merchants and consumers are attracted by our disruptive technology, which enables us to offer free, innovative, scalable and low-cost products and services with simpler onboarding, no paperwork and a high acceptance rate, while maintaining levels of fraud below those required by the card schemes. Once on our platform, merchants can offer consumers 40 cash-in methods, choose to obtain early payment of their card receivables on consumer installment transactions, and manage their cash balances on our free PagBank digital account, which offers 13 cash-out options including wire and peer to peer transfers, QR code payments, bill payments, top up prepaid mobile phone, Uber, Spotify or Google Play credits and in-person and online purchases or cash withdrawals using our PagSeguro prepaid and cash cards. Our management tools help them start or grow their businesses with PagSeguro as a partner, with software functionalities such as sales reports, credit and debit card reconciliation and inventory control, which we believe create a strong commercial bond with our clients. We believe the combination of all these features increases our clients’ loyalty, leading them to conduct additional business with us, in a virtuous cycle. Our merchants span businesses of all types and sizes, ranging from individual entrepreneurs, micro-merchants and small companies such as street vendors and beauty salons, to medium-sized companies in retail and other sectors. We also have a growing presence in the business-to-business commerce segment.

Our cross-border payments business unit is branded under the name of Pagseguro International (Pagseguro Tecnologia Ltda.) and is a wholly owned subsidiary of PagSeguro. Pagseguro Tecnologia operates as a cross-border PSP, providing online payment services for international merchants throughout Latin America, Portugal, Spain and Turkey, through more than 140 payment options.

Some of our key financial and operating data are as follows:

•At December 31, 2022, our active merchants totaled 7.1 million, representing a decrease of 8.0% compared with 7.7 million at year-end 2021. Our active merchants at year-end 2021 represented an increase of 9.4% compared with 7.0 million at year-end 2020.

•In 2022, our TPV totaled R$731.4 billion, representing an increase of 60.4% compared with R$456.1 billion in 2021. Our TPV in 2021 represented an increase of 97.0% compared with R$231.5 billion in 2020. In 2022, our PagSeguro TPV totaled R$353.8 billion and our PagBank TPV totaled R$377.6 billion.

•In 2022, our Total revenue and income totaled R$15,334.9 million, representing an increase of 46.8% compared with R$10,448.7 million in 2021. Our Total revenue and income in 2021 represented an increase of 53.3% compared with R$6,814.7 million in 2020. The principal components of our Total revenue and income posted the following growth:

*Our Revenue from transaction activities and other services totaled R$8,906.4 million in 2022, an increase of 31.3% compared with R$6,784.8 million in 2021. The total of these revenue items in 2021 represented an increase of 50.5% compared with R$4,508.7 million in 2020.

*Our Financial income totaled R$6,252.7 million in 2022, an increase of 77.9% compared with R$3,514.4 million in 2021. Financial income in 2021 represented an increase of 61.4% compared with R$2,177.4 million in 2020.

•In 2022, our Net income for the year totaled R$1,504.8 million, representing an increase of 29.0% compared with R$1,166.3 million in 2021. Net income for the year in 2021 represented a decrease of 9.8% compared with R$1,292.3 million in 2020.

•At December 31, 2022, our PagBank active users totaled 16.2 million, representing an increase of 23.9% compared with 13.1 million at December 31, 2021. Our PagBank active users in 2021 represented an increase of 66.2% compared with 7.9 million in 2020.

With respect to the labor market, in December 2022, according to information from IBGE’s PNAD, Brazil had 47.5 million formal economy employees and 22.1 million informal economy employees (considering the private sector, domestic services and the public sector), representing a major market opportunity for digital banks, as most of the 22.1 million individuals employed in the informal economy remain unbanked or under-banked, and seek digital payments and credit solutions.

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According to SEBRAE (Portal do Empreendedor) and Brazil’s Internal Revenue Services (Receita Federal), there were 14.8 million micro-merchants (MEIs) in Brazil as of December 31, 2022. Also, according to the most recent Annual Social Information Report (Relação Anual de Informações Sociais - RAIS), published by the Ministry of the Economy, as of December 31, 2021, there were 3.8 million SMEs. Additionally, according to IBGE’s PNAD, as of December 31, 2022, there were 18.6 million individuals self-employed in the informal economy, usually individual customers of card acquirers. Taken together, this totals an addressable market of 37.2 million formal and informal businesses. In addition, according to SEBRAE, the number of individual micro entrepreneurs in Brazil increased significantly, from 772 thousand in 2010 to 14.9 million in March 2023.

We believe that by continuing to migrate these individual micro entrepreneurs and micro companies into our ecosystem, we can continue to drive significant additional revenue growth in the coming years. At the same time, we will continue to introduce more value-added products and services targeted to larger clients. For example, we have introduced a number of products and services during the prior years, which include the following:

•In January 2021, we launched a pre-authorization card which allows a pre-authorized transaction to occur as credit and can be confirmed for a lower amount later if needed (never a higher amount). This service is aimed at the airline, car rental and hotel segments. This transaction requires a physical card to be completed;

•In May 2021, we launched Moderninha Profit, a payment terminal that was developed to meet the demand of a niche of sellers who do not need a touch screen device but instead insist on having a device with a printer;

•In April 2021, we launched PagPhone, a smartphone and card machine device. This device aims to ensure that the seller does not to lose sales, it accepts payments by credit and debit cards, Pix transactions, QR codes and approximation (NFC) cards. PagPhone is a complete cell phone that guarantees greater practicality and mobility for merchants. This device allows the merchant to receive messages and respond to customers on social media and WhatsApp, in addition to taking and posting product photos, all on a single device and uses Android 10 technology;

•In April 2021, we launched ClubePag, which is a customer loyalty tool, provided free of charge by PagSeguro to retain its customers. At ClubePag, you build your club, create your own offers, and make cashback available to customers to accumulate credit;

•In September 2021, we launched Moderninha Wi-fi Plus, which has 3G and Wifi connection but does not include a printer or a touchscreen, but allows messages to be sent via SMS, accepts payments by credit and debit cards, Pix transactions, QR codes and approximation (NFC) cards;

•In October 2021, we launched the anticipation function in our Moderninhas payment terminals, which allows the anticipation of receivables by scheduling payments for transactions carried out within the 30 and 14-day period whenever you need it;

•In January 2022, we launched the Minizinha Chip 3 payment terminal, with a larger display and color screen, the new Minizinha Chip 3 payment terminal aims to facilitate the merchant’s day to day activities. A mobile phone isn’t needed as the payment terminalhas a Wi-Fi connection and a SIM card with a free data plan. This payment terminal accepts payments by credit and debit cards, Pix transactions and approximation (NFC) cards;

•In January 2022, we launched PagTotem, ideal for use in stores, markets, and fast-food restaurants, PagTotem posses a touch screen, printer and integrated card reader. PagTotem is a comprehensive solution that guarantees practicality and connectivity during the checkout process and allows the merchant to manage their equipment through the PagSeguro Store. This self-service equipment has a 23 inch touchscreen display, with ethernet connection, 2.4/5 Ghz Wi-Fi bandwidths, and Bluetooth;

•In January 2022, we launched the PagBank debit card, which is free and has no annual fee for customers, designed to simplify their routine. With it, our customers can manage the balance of their account, withdraw cash and make debit card purchases, both in Brazil and abroad.

•In February 2022, we launched the typed pre-authorization. In this modality, the pre-authorization sale can be used by providing the card data, security code and validity information;

•In March 2022, we launched the prepaid mobile top-up service in the Minizinha Chip payment terminal, a mobile top-up and service top-up functionality that has been expanded and now possesses the modality to be accepted in the Minizinhas Chip payment terminals; and

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•In March 2022, we launched the Moderninha Plus 2 payment terminal, which allows sales to be carried out quickly with 3G and Wi-Fi connections, and is a particularly well-suited device for professionals that work in establishments such as beauty salons, tattoo studios and wellness clinics, as it can be shared with up to six professionals. With a modern design, it accepts payments by Pix transactions and card approximation and comes with a chip and data plan.

•In April 2022, we launched the one-click investment, where the customer can invest in a complete diversified portfolio with just one click.

•In July 2022, we launched the free credit card with a limit of up to 100% of the value of the customer’s investment in PagBank CDs. Those who invest their money in PagBank CDs receive an international credit card with no annual fee and a limit equal to the value of their investments.

•In August 2022, we launched the Moderninha Smart Plus terminal, focused on front-end store operations. The Moderninha Smart 2 accepts payments by credit, debit, and QR Code with speed and agility. It has a modern design, Wi-Fi connection, 4G Chip and Bluetooth, touch screen, and integrated camera.

•In August 2022, we launched The Poupar Automático product, which allows the customer to choose a percentage of their sales to invest automatically in a daily liquidity CD and bring more convenience to their daily life. The goal is to help the customer create the habit of saving their earnings and get even closer to their financial goals.

•In September 2022, we launched the free credit card with a balance equal to the balance amount in the customer’s bank account, where the customer can use part or all of the available balance in their account as a credit limit. This is the credit card with a limit secured through the account balance.This feature is also available for those who already have a PagBank credit card but wish to further increase their limit. In this case, they can also use part or all of their account balance.

•In December 2022, we rebranded the PagBank Saúde product, an assistance service for customers and their families to have access to affordable consultations and exams in a broad medical and dental network. In addition to discounts on medications at the country's major pharmacies, there are now discounts on surgeries and 24-hour emergency telephone support.

In 2020, BancoSeguro expanded its investment alternatives in the Super App service, with the issuance of CDs yielding a rate of 105% to 200% over the CDI. In addition, we began to distribute quotas in new investment funds managed by third parties and backed by incentive debt issuances, corporate debt issuances, and Brazilian treasury bills and shares, and we recently started to offer a new service that allows our customers to buy, hold and sell quotas for investment funds in cryptocurrencies also managed by third parties.

Our History

We launched PagSeguro in 2006 as an online payment platform to provide the digital payment infrastructure necessary for e-commerce growth in Brazil. By 2016 we were considered the largest Brazilian online payment company in terms of TPV, according to data compiled by Ebit. UOL’s credibility in the Brazilian internet sector was key to this successful, launch and remains so today. Founded in 1996, UOL is Brazil’s largest internet content, digital products and services company. According to comScore, 109 million unique visitors (approximately 70% of Brazilian internet users) accessed a UOL website in January 2023 representing an increase of 4% from 105 million in January 2022, an increase of 20% from 90.4 million in April 2018 and an increase of 34% from 81.2 million in May 2017. In addition, according to Google Analytics and Google Ad Manager (the ad server system that we utilize) as of March 2023, UOL achieved approximately 7 billion page views, provided approximately 6.l billion display ad impressions and had a potential video inventory of 349 million video ads. The PagSeguro and UOL brands together gave Brazilian online consumers the confidence to use their sensitive personal and financial data on our payments platform, in order to shop online easily and safely. As an example, we brought trust to the online merchant-customer relationship by introducing a feature where we hold the consumer’s payment in escrow for a period of time after the purchase, as a precaution in case of any commercial claims.

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In January 2021, we submitted to the Central Bank a request for the approval of a corporate reorganization that involved certain of our subsidiaries and we received the corresponding approval in August 2021. As a result of this reorganization, the entities Net+Phone, PagSeguro Tecnologia Ltda. (Current denomination of Boa Compra) “PagSeguro Tecnologia”, BCPS, R2TECH, BIVA and CDS were spun off from PagSeguro Brazil and since then they have been controlled by PagSeguro Digital’s direct subsidiary PagSeg. In addition, TILIX, Yamí and Zygo subsidiaries were spun off from PagSeguro Brazil with control passing to PagBank Holding, a holding company that we incorporated in Brazil to receive the Group’s unregulated assets.

The list below describes changes to our organizational structure in the year ended December 31, 2021:

•In March 2021, we incorporated PagSeguro Holding Ltd., or PagSeguro Holding, to serve as a holding company directly under PagSeguro Digital;

•In the third quarter of 2021, we incorporated four new subsidiaries under PagSeguro Holding consisting of the following entities:

▪PagSeguro Chile SPA, or PagSeguro Chile;

▪PagSeguro Colombia S.A.S, or PagSeguro Colombia;

▪PSGP México S.A de C.V., or PSGP Mexico; and

▪PagSeguro Peru S.A.C., or PagSeguro Peru.

•In August 2021, we acquired Concil Inteligência em Conciliação S.A., or Concil, which now operates as a subsidiary of PagSeguro Brazil;

PagSeguro Digital Ltd. [PAGS] Filings
20-F	[2023-04-28]
20-F	[2022-05-02]
20-F	[2021-04-27]
20-F	[2020-04-22]
20-F	[2019-04-16]
F-1	[2018-06-18]
20-F	[2018-04-06]
F-1	[2017-12-26]