Facebook messenger to process payments?
SiliconValley have reported on some sneaky investigative work by Stanford computer science student Andrew Aude. He has discovered that Facebook messenger is now set up to process financial transactions between users.
The feature will function in a similar way to how we currently use the app to send photos with the added security of an in-app pin code. The cards used can be added within the app or can be the card users already have on file with FaceBook ( i.e. for ads) The cards available currently are only Debit cards, it seems because they cost lower fees for transferring funds and are generally easier for customers to use.
There is no clue as of yet if Facebook will charge a fee for processing transections or if they will offer the feature for free (at least to begin with). There has been some recent backlash to the separation of the the FaceBook Mobile app and the FaceBook Messenger Mobile App that they may be seeking to rectify with a free service such as this. This will also allow them to compete in a whole new arena of peer-to-peer payments with companies such as Venmo and Square.
The guy deciding all of this is David Marcus, the new head of Messenger AND formerly the president of PayPal.We seem some kind of link there… Building up a payements processing feature within messenger could also build the acceptance as FB processing financial transactions, which could prove helpful, as Facebook is also working on a ‘Buy’ button for making eCommerce purchases straight from the News Feed.
Can you see yourself using FB to transfer funds to your Facebook friends or to process other financial transactions?
Tags: Facebook, Messenger, Paypal
Apple | iPhone-Antidote | 
October 6, 2014 4:41 pm
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