Facebook first introduced the concept of peer to peer payments via its Messenger mobile app in March earlier this year. Basically, this functionality allowed users to send cash to their friends on Facebook absolutely free of charge, as long as they already have connected information from their Visa or MasterCard debit card accounts.
And now, the social media giant is deploying a new set of updates for Messenger's payment functionality. Before, Facebook users who send money using their debit cards could activate the payment feature by tapping a dollar sign while having a chat conversation inside the Messenger app. This time around, the dollar amounts are hyperlinked immediately once the sender taps the dollar sign, which will then proceed to sending the specified amount of cash to the intended recipient. The sender can confirm the payment before any cash is sent via Messenger. The hyperlinking process is actually similar to how URLs, email addresses, and contact numbers are hyperlinked when communicated on the Messenger app.
Another new enhancement to the payment feature allows a Facebook user participating in a group chat conversation to send money to another person also in that group without needing to exit the conversation.
Those who are looking forward to taking advantage of the Messenger's newly updated payment feature will be glad to know that it is now expanding to the New York City metropolitan area. The Big Apple now joins other selected cities in the United States, like Portland (Oregon), Seattle (Washington), and Austin (Texas).
The fact that Facebook is continuing to explore payment options for its Messenger app can be taken as evidence that the company is really making an effort to become more than just a social media platform. Of course, Facebook may just trying to be more competitive with other providers who are also venturing into mobile payments. Special mentions go to Snapchat's Snapcash (in collaboration with Square Cash) and PayPal's Venmo.
Few are arguing though Facebook's advantage in numbers. After all, around 600 million people around the world use its Messenger mobile app. And considering that that 600 million is just a fraction of the social media giant's current 1.4 billion strong user base, there is still a lot of potential Messenger users left untapped.
And the great thing is that Messenger's payment feature is not the only perk that Facebook has added to its chat messaging app. Just a month ago, the company also launched a new video calling feature that lets users chat with each other face to face via cellular or Wi-Fi networks simply by tapping a video camera icon on Messenger. Facebook may still be cooking some new features for its messaging app, and a lot of people are waiting to see what it can come up with next.
