WhatsApp tests crypto payments with Novi in the US

Some people in the United States can now send and receive money from inside of a Whatsapp chat using cryptocurrency. This is Powered by Novi, Meta’s digital wallet, which launched as a pilot six weeks ago. 

Payments are made with Pax Dollars (USDP), a stable coin made by Paxos that is linked to the US dollar. Stephane Kasriel, the new head of Novi, and Will Cathcart, the head of WhatsApp made the announcement.

It appears that transferring a payment on WhatsApp works in the same way as sending any other attachment, according to Novi’s official website. A paperclip icon on Android or a plus sign on iOS is how you get to this feature. Then, from the menu that opens, choose “Payment.”

If you want to send or receive money, Novi doesn’t charge you to do so. There are no limits on how often payments can be sent, and there are no fees for keeping a balance in a Novi account or withdrawing money to your bank account. Payments are made in real-time and are completely secure.

In the beginning, the Novi pilot was only available in the United States and Guatemala. WABetaInfo says that users in Guatemala will not be able to use the new WhatsApp payments feature. In place of that, they will have to keep using the Novi app on its own. It doesn’t matter if you make a payment or not because WhatsApp has end-to-end encryption by default for all personal messages. Both English and Spanish versions of the WhatsApp Novi pilot are currently available.

When Facebook (now Meta) announced intentions for a cryptocurrency platform in 2019, it was widely anticipated. On behalf of the Libra Association, Facebook planned to introduce a cryptocurrency called Libra, tethered to a basket of low-volatility assets rather than a single currency. This would work with a digital wallet made by Facebook called Calibra. The system as a whole was developed to provide a lower-cost alternative to existing methods of sending money throughout the world.

Since then, there have been significant changes as regards the company’s intention. For examplle, Libra is now called Diem. The Libra Association lost a lot of well influential members and changed its name to Diem Association. By far the most important thing is that Novi didn’t have the Diem cryptocurrency when it started. Because Pax Dollars aren’t made by Meta, they’re made by a separate company called Paxos, and Coinbase is Meta’s “custody partner,” which means they’re kept safe.

As head of Novi in October, David Marcus said that Meta is still very interested in Diem. Marcus tweeted: “We intend to launch Novi with Diem once it receives regulatory approval.” A few months after this, David Marcus said he was leaving. He said he was leaving at the end of the year. In a WhatsApp message, he referred to the pilot of the Novi as “the best farewell gift from the best team ever!”

WhatsApp’s payment plans in the United States are all about Novi and cryptocurrency, but in other parts of the world, it already allows people to pay with traditional fiat currencies. There were a lot of people in India who used the feature last year. It has also been used in Brazil, though suspended.