As Covid-19 forces more people to look for cashless alternatives, Mastercard and Facebook have inked a deal that offers a new way to send money digitally.
Through the extended partnership, Mastercard cardholders in Brazil will be able to transfer money via the Facebook-owned messaging app WhatsApp.
Customers at challenger bank Nubank and the financial cooperative Sicredi will be among the first to get access to the new Mastercard Send service on their smartphones.
“Adding a payment functionality to WhatsApp is a logical evolution to answer the needs of both consumers and small businesses in Brazil,” said Kiki Del Valle, senior vice president of digital partnerships at Mastercard Latin America and Caribbean. “The possibility to make purchases from small merchants through WhatsApp will support millions of local businesses which have been heavily impacted by the recent crisis as well as meet the demands for Brazilian of users who are looking to send payments to their friends and family each day.”
Matt Idema, COO at WhatsApp, added, “We are very excited to bring payments on WhatsApp to our users across Brazil. Making it easier to send and receive money could not be more important than at a time like this. Small businesses are the backbone of the country. The ability to easily make sales right within WhatsApp will help business owners adapt to the digital economy and to support growth and financial recovery.”
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