The Facebook Messenger payment system has been expanded to cover all of the United States, however the app is still limited to the use of debit cards.
In order for users to be able to make payments using the messenger app, they have to connect a debit card to their personal Facebook account, then using the “$” icon embedded in the message screen they can type the amount of money they want to send to the person they are talking to.
The app was available in certain regions since earlier this year, and residents from cities like New York and Austin already had access to it.
The company has stated earlier this year that the app is not intended for “commercial purposes” although many users expect this to change. In any case the system by with bussinesses do not have access to the Facebook messenger payment system can be bypassed.
For example company employees who have Facebook accounts could potentially receive payment instead of the company, but this will off course work only for micro-businesses and small companies.
Facebook product manager Steve Davis explained earlier this year that “We are not building a payments business. Payments in Messenger is focused on providing utility. People talk about money all the time in Messenger but end up going somewhere else to do the transaction.”
Facebook does indeed seem to want to keep the app available only for non-commercial use although some web specialist claim this could just be the test phase of a much larger project.
In the meanwhile, the new Facebook messenger payment service could possibly connect like’s and shares with revenue.
Soon Individuals and NGOs which have non-profit objectives could receive donations through the messenger app only seconds after posting informational content about their projects on Facebook finally putting a stop to the “1 like 1 cent” jokes.
The Facebook messenger payment service is free to use, and has no taxes or fees applicable to the amounts sent.
The payment receiver has to accept the payment in order for the process to begin but unfortunately the money transfer can take days before it is completed depending on the day it is sent and the banks that have to transfer and receive the money.
Image Source: hypable.com