Facebook is aiming for a more coherent strategy to make digital payments with the formation of a new division, Facebook Financial, which “will execute all payment projects, including Facebook Pay”, according to Bloomberg. The unit is led by ongoing Facebook exec David Marcus, who was previously employed by Messenger before continuing to focus on the company’s blockchain efforts and Libra cryptocurrency.
He will still oversee that attempt, but Facebook Financial will remain as important as no more, as the company tries to get its very popular apps – Facebook, Messenger, Instagram and WhatsApp – on the same messaging basis. With Facebook Pay, you can send money to friends / family or buy goods through Facebook’s software platforms. In the US, it can be used in Facebook, Messenger, and Instagram, although elsewhere in the world it is still largely limited to the core Facebook app. (You can find more details here.)
Today we are creating a new group to take care of all payments / FS @ Facebook (FB Pay, Novi, WhatsApp payments, …). With that, I am warmly welcomed @skasriel to look at FB payments. No changes @Novi, which I will direct immediately.
– David Marcus (@davidmarcus) August 10, 2020
Keeping Facebook users within those payment apps, instead of sneaking out to use Apple Pay, Google Pay, Venmo, PayPal, Zelle, or other digital currency platforms, will help business advertising. “As payments grow over Messenger and WhatsApp, and because we can roll that out in more places, I think that will only grow as a trend,” Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said on the company’s latest call, according to MarketWatch.
The Novi unit and Facebook’s embedded Libra cryptocurrency will fall under the Facebook Financial umbrella. Facebook had to shift plans for Libra to months of regulatory pressure and financial partners bailing on the attempt.
Facebook has not made an official announcement for Facebook Financial (internally called “F2”, per Bloomberg), but it remains the company’s striving for a more cohesive experience central to the Facebook market – sort of like how “Facebook” is now being stamped on the charge screens for Instagram and WhatsApp.
