Facebook is rolling out its new UPI money transfer WhatsApp payment service for users in India after receiving approval from the country’s regulators.
The company on Friday announced that the feature will be available in India starting today.
India currently has many payment apps including Paytm, Google Pay, Amazon Pay and PhonePe.
WhatsApp Payment now available for users in India
India’s regulatory body for retail payments, the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), gave its approval to WhatsApp to start payments with an initial limit of 20 million users.
Announcing the new feature, WhatsApp said in a blog, “Starting today, people across India will be able to send money through WhatsApp.
This secure payment experience makes transferring money just as easy as sending a message. People can safely send money to a family member or share the cost of goods from a distance without having to exchange cash in person or going to a local bank.”
WhatsApp has partnered with five leading banks in India including ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, Axis Bank, the State Bank of India, and Jio Payments Bank. “To send money on WhatsApp in India, it’s necessary to have a bank account and debit card in India.
WhatsApp sends instructions to banks, also known as payment service providers, that initiate the transfer of money via UPI between sender and receiver bank accounts,” WhatsApp said. People can also send money through WhatsApp to anyone who is using an app that supports UPI.
“In the long run, we believe the combination of WhatsApp and UPI’s unique architecture can help local organizations address some of the key challenges of our time, including increasing rural participation in the digital economy and delivering financial services to those who have never had access before,” WhatsApp blog reads.
The company has said that “payments is designed with a strong set of security and privacy principles”. WhatsApp Payments is available for all iOS and Android users. To get the new feature, users are required to update their apps.
How to Send and Receive Money on WhatsApp
To send or receive money on WhatsApp in India. You need a bank account and debit card.
The Facebook-owned messaging app will send instructions to banks, also known as payment service providers, that will initiate the transfer of money via UPI between sender and receiver bank accounts.
With this, WhatsApp users can send money to anyone using a UPI supported app.
While using WhatsApp for payments, one needs to enter a personal UPI PIN for each transaction.
“Just like every feature in WhatsApp, payments is designed with a strong set of security and privacy principles, including entering a personal UPI PIN for each payment,” the statement said.
How to Setup Your WhatsApp Payment Account
Following are the steps for WhatsApp UPI Payment account setup.
Step 1: Need to Update Your WhatsApp App
Step 2: Click on the WhatsApp app on your mobile phone and select the three-dotted icon visible on the top right corner of your screen.
Step 3: Select ‘Payments’, then ‘Add payment method’
Step 4: A list of bank names will be on your screen.
Step 5: After you finish selecting your bank name, your cell number, which is linked with the bank, will be verified.
Step 6: For verification, a user needs to select ‘Verify’ via SMS.
Note: You need to make sure the WhatsApp number is the same as the one linked to your bank a/c.
Step 8: Once you’re done with the verification process, a user then needs to complete setting up payments.
Step 9: A UPI pin is mandatory for carrying out transactions on WhatsApp similar to how it’s on other apps.
Step 10: Following this, you can see the chosen bank on the payments page.
How to Send and Receive Money Using WhatsApp
Following are the steps to send and receive money using WhatsApp Payment
Step 1: Open any chat on WhatsApp and select the ‘attachment’ icon.
Step 2: Click on ‘Payment’ and add the money you want to send to the person. A user can also add a note.
Step 3: To finish the payment process on WhatsApp, you will have to enter your UPI PIN.
Step 4: After you finish you transaction, you will get a confirmation message.
Payments on WhatsApp is now available for users on the latest version of the iPhone and Android app.