After India and Brazil, WhatsApp launches the ability to pay businesses via chat in Singapore. Meta is working with Stripe to roll out the feature in the region.
WhatsApp built this payment feature using Stripe Connect and Stripe Checkout solutions, making in-app payments available online and offline. Customers can pay businesses using credit cards, debit cards or the Singaporean PayNow fund transfer system.
Meta said that the feature to accept payments via WhatsApp is currently only available to a few companies. But it plans to expand availability to more merchants in the coming months. Businesses can set up this feature through WhatsApp Business, which will also help them get a Stripe account.
“Most people I know in Singapore use WhatsApp to chat with each other. Now they can also pay local businesses with the app. The speed and convenience of payments through WhatsApp will help businesses expand their revenue streams with new channels and access a broader customer base,” said Sarita Singh, regional head and general manager for Southeast Asia at Stripe, in a statement.
WhatsApp first launched its payment services in India based on the country’s Unified Payment Interface (UPI) network in 2020 in test mode. In 2022, the National Payments Corporation of India allowed Meta to expand the service to 100 million users. Last August, the company rolled out an end-to-end shopping experience with Reliance Jio in India, allowing customers to order groceries using the app. Last month, WhatsApp also launched payments for merchants in Brazil, after allowing peer-to-peer payments for nearly three years.
Mark Zuckerberg is now leveraging the chat app’s 2 billion users to launch payment services across regions. Since WhatsApp has no subscription fees or ads, its business offers are Meta’s main method of monetizing the app. Starting next month, WhatsApp will also switch from a notification-based pricing system to a conversation-based pricing structure for the use of its business services.