Facebook has recently announced the launch of its new payment service called Facebook Pay. A similar step has also been taken by other giant companies like Google and Apple in the past and has been very successful for them.
In a blog posted by Facebook on their website, they made it clear that even they will be jumping into the same pool and launching a dedicated payment application called Facebook Pay.
Facebook Pay has been made to make payments easier and safer for all Facebook users across the family of apps such as WhatsApp, Instagram, Messenger, etc.
Starting
Facebook Pay on all the applications owned by Facebook will provide a
familiar payment interface across all the different mobile app
platforms. The service will directly take on the Venmo service from
PayPal, which offers a similar function for all the family apps.
How to Use it?
Facebook has also revealed some information on how to use the Facebook Pay feature. The user has to follow these steps while on the Facebook website or mobile application, and they can start using the payment service.
- Go to the Facebook website or app and select Settings.
- Select the option ‘Facebook Pay.’
- Select a payment method.
- Whenever you make the next payment now, you can use Facebook Pay.
Payment Methods accepted and Security Measures
Facebook Pay will allow all major debit and credit cards, along with other payment platforms such as PayPal and Stripe. Users will be able to use a PIN and biometrics for authentication, adding an extra layer of security while making the payments.
Facebook has mentioned the Facebook Pay app will not save or store any of their biometric or security information, nor will it send the same to Facebook.
Also, the payment platform has been designed to perform anti-fraud monitoring to prevent any unauthorized activity. The platform will provide Facebook notifications for any action through Facebook Pay to keep the customer alert.
The user will also be allowed to view their previous transaction history, and they can share their payment with friends or on the live feed as per their choice.
Availability on Facebook Family apps
Facebook has made it very clear that the payment platform will currently be available on the Messenger app and Facebook. Later it will be launched on other family applications like Instagram and WhatsApp.
Instagram and Facebook have a huge market place and a vast customer database, which will allow them to use this new payment platform to maximum potential. As per the blog, a user can use it to make a payment for any services or products purchased through the Facebook Marketplace, including fundraisers, donations, game purchases, events, or to pay a friend.
They have also mentioned that users can use the Facebook app-by-app service to automatically set up Facebook Pay on the other mobile application of Facebook family, installed on the user’s mobile phone.
Facebook finally in the payment app race!!
There were many speculations after the announcement that Facebook Pay could be a part of Calibra, which is the much-awaited cryptocurrency wallet project from Facebook.
However, Facebook made it clear that Facebook Pay is not related to Calibra and is different from it. The Digital cryptocurrency wallet will be a separate service from Facebook, and we might get to see it shortly.
The market is currently flooded with new payments apps and services by multiple tech giants and new companies.
Now, since Facebook has also joined the race, it will be interesting to see how people accept this payment service from Facebook, especially after the government has been strict with them on the issues of data breach and security.
No information was yet provided about its launch in other countries except the USA. Whatever the reason may be, but Facebook Pay is undoubtedly going to gain its place in the race of payment application.