Whatsapp rolls out first wave of in-app digital payments
Messaging platform Whatsapp today launched its first nationwide rollout of digital payments, starting in Brazil.
Users will be able to send payments inside a Whatsapp chat to individuals or businesses in a similar way to attaching a picture or video to a message.
The rollout follows an initial testing period in India two years ago, Whatsapp’s largest market. Brazil is its second largest demographic, with 120m users.
“Whatsapp is heavily used there, both by people and small businesses,” Matt Idema, chief operating officer of Whatsapp, told Reuters.
“We think we can help grow digital payments, help grow the digital economy with small businesses, and help support financial inclusion.”
The new feature uses Facebook Pay to carry out the payments, which launched last year. The service is free to use with no fees, though businesses will pay a small processing fee to receive payments.
Idema said Whatsapp is planning to bring the payment system to several other countries, but did not specify which ones.
Facebook chief executive Mark Zuckerberg said in April that the company was expanding tools for businesses in Whatsapp.
The firm launched Whatsapp Business in 2018, which allows businesses to send out marketing messages, browse product catalogues and answer customer queries.
“Payments on Whatsapp are beginning to roll out to people across Brazil beginning today and we look forward to bringing it to everyone as we go forward,” the company said in a blog post.
“The over 10m small and micro businesses are the heartbeat of Brazil’s communities. It’s become second nature to send a zap to a business to get questions answered. Now in addition to viewing a store’s catalog, customers will be able to send payments for products as well.”