Facebook confirms that it is testing a new QR code feature and payment links for use with Facebook Pay to make it easier for people in the United States to send or to request money from one another.
Facebook Pay testing
The QR code feature, similar to Venmo's QR codes and others, will allow a user to scan a code with the camera of their smartphone so they can send or request money, while the sharable payment links will let users publish the payment address outside of Facebook itself.
The addition to the feature was first spotted on Apr. 5 by MacRumors, which reported that users were being presented with a new Scan button in the Facebook Pay carousel at the top of the screen.
When users tap this button, they are launched into an experience where you can scan the other person's code.
The screen that displays the QR code also introduces the personalized payment URL in the format "https://m.me/pay/UserName," which can also be sent to other people when users are making a payment or if they are sending a request for a payment.
According to the Facebook spokesperson, the feature's launch is confirmed but characterized it as a test that is currently taking place in the United States, as per Slash Gear.
The spokesperson stated that to make payments on Messenger even easier, they have begun testing the ability for people to use QR codes and payment links when they want to send or to request money.
Users from the United States are the only ones who can send payments through Messenger at this time.
Users who wish to send and receive money in Messenger must be at least 18 years of age, and they will have to have a Visa or Mastercard debit card, a PayPal account, or one of the supported prepaid cards or government-issued cards, in order to use the payments feature.
They will also need to set their preferred currency to US dollars in the app.
Facebook Pay launch
Facebook first introduced Facebook Pay service in Nov. 2019. It was a way to establish a single payment system that can extend across the company's app.
But the service as it stands today is not a rival to other apps like PayPal, which is the most famous money sending and receiving app, because Facebook currently partners with PayPal as one of the supported payment methods.
Currently, Facebook Pay powers payments experience across a number of areas in Facebook, which are focused on commerce, tipping and donations, including Facebook Marketplace, Facebook Shop, Buy on Instagram.
It's also available for other activities such as buying Stars to support gaming Creators, buying tickets to events, making donations, and many more.
Users can also send money to friends on Messenger through a built-in button.
For now, this payment feature is different from Facebook's cryptocurrency wallet, Novi, but one could imagine that in time, the two will be more integrated.
Facebook declined to release more details about the test, including how many or what percentage of users will see the new QR codes and links or when tests began and when they will end.
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This article is owned by Tech Times
Written by Sieeka Khan
