The Picnic Card uses the **on-chain dollar**: close to the commercial rate, with no hidden fees, completely transparent.

The so-called “commercial dollar” reported in the media is just a **reference index**.

This rate is not directly accessible to individuals.

When trying to buy dollars at banks or exchange offices, there are always **spreads, administrative fees, and IOF (a Brazilian tax)** applied, making the final amount considerably more expensive than the reported number.

## What exchange rate does Picnic use?

-   The Picnic Card uses the so-called **on-chain dollar**.
-   This rate is formed on blockchain networks, through the trading of stablecoins and decentralized liquidity.
-   The on-chain dollar is usually **very close to the commercial dollar**, but not exactly the same.
-   The main advantage: **there are no hidden fees**. The amount you see is exactly the amount charged, with no additional spreads applied later.
-   At Picnic, there are no “surprises”:
-   There are no intermediaries.

## Practical example

-   Reported commercial dollar: R$ 5.00.
-   Common bank/exchange: R$ 5.20 to R$ 5.30 (with fees included).
-   Picnic (on-chain rate visible at the time): R$ 5.07 → and this is the final amount, no surprises.

**Practical summary**  
Picnic does not promise the “Google commercial dollar,” because this rate is not practically accessible to the user.

  
The Picnic Card uses the **on-chain dollar**: close to the commercial rate, with no hidden fees, completely transparent.

##   
Next steps

[Picnic card fees and limits](https://help.usepicnic.com/hc/picnic/articles/limites-do-cartao-picnic)