Brazil mulls putting tax on digital transactions

RIO DE JANEIRO - The Brazilian government has been studying the possibility of introducing a tax on digital transactions, Economy Minister Paulo Guedes said Wednesday.

At a press conference in Brasilia, Guedes said digital transactions, such as those made from bank applications on smart phones, are becoming more and more popular in Brazil.

This new tax, said Guedes, would be different from the Provisional Contribution on Financial Transactions (CPMF), a much-criticized tax over financial transactions charged from 1997 to 2007 in Brazil to subsidize the country's public healthcare system.

Since its abolition in 2007, the possibility of the return of the CPMF tax is periodically rumored in the country. So far, the current government has denied any intention of reviving the tax.