Facebook has launched the facility of sending users money across the WhatsApp platform. Along with sharing videos, images, documents now there is also an option of sending money. Facebook launched this feature in Brazil, the second-largest user base for WhatsApp after India. WhatsApp had tested online payment services in India back in 2018 but was always held by the regulators. Brazil has 120 million individual users in Brazil, and everyone in the country uses WhatsApp by users and small businesses. Facebook said that they want to regulate small businesses and help grow digital payments and digital economy through small businesses. Small business in Brazil already uses the platform to remote their brands. Adding the facility of sending money will enhance the functionality of the app. Facebook has said they will charge a small fee for receiving the payment. Facebook said they had been trying to improve the utility of the app, and they have a more comprehensive digital payment strategy across the Facebook platform. Facebook will roll out the feature in India in phased manner slowing expanding the user base.
Facebook had been planning to roll out this feature in Brazil for quite some time now. It will help during the pandemic to lend money or but something without having to come in contact with the other person. It will be free for users but charge a small fee for businesses. Facebook plans to bring this feature to many countries, especially India. Facebook just bought 10% stakes in Reliance’s Jio owned by Asia’s richest man Mukesh Ambani. They plan to improve the relationship with India since Mukesh is also an influential personality in India; they also plan to use the newly launched JioMart. Facebook also invested cab service app Gojek based in Indonesia to expand its GoPay services. Facebook has now had more than 2 billion users across the world, along with Facebook planning, to release its digital money; it is also focusing on digitized money. It will be interesting to see how the company moves forward in the future to improve its platform and what all measures they take to penetrate different markets across the world.
