Facebook has announced its person-to-person payments platform is now available to all Messenger users in the United States.
The scheme, first announced in March, has completed successful trials in New York and has rolled out across the United States.
Direct Payments makes it easy for friends to exchange cash simply by adding a debit or credit card to their account.
It seems perfect for short terms loans, or paying a share of the dinner bill or concert tickets, without worrying about logging into PayPal and sending money that way.
In a post on his page, Facebook’s David Marcus said: “We’re happy to announce that Messenger person-to-person payments are now available to everyone in the U.S.! Add your Debit Card and pay anyone on Messenger in a few taps.
The roll out comes as Facebook places more and more focus on Messenger as an important standalone platform.
Just last week the company freed Messenger from the shackles of the main Facebook experience. Now people only need to use their phone number to sign up rather than their Facebook account.
Read more: Why Zuck forced Messenger on everyone
There’s no word yet on an international roll out for the free to use payments service, but it shouldn’t be too far away.
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Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
