Wait Is Over: “WhatsApp Pay” Now Available for Indians! Here’s How To Use WhatsApp Pay To Send Money Over WhatsApp Chat

After the nod from the NPCI (National Payments Corporation of India), WhatsApp has started its payment service in India on Friday. NPCI, which runs the UPI (Unified Payment Interface), allowed WhatsApp to launch its payment service in the country in a “tiered” manner on Thursday, with a maximum number of registered users of 20 million UPI, which is used for real-time payments between peers or merchants’ end when purchasing.

The company announced that the feature will be available in India starting today. India’s users will be able to send money via WhatsApp. This safe and secure payment experience makes transferring money as easy as sending a message. The Facebook-owned company said in a blog post: People can safely send money to their families or share the cost of goods from a distance without having to exchange funds in person or going to the bank.

Starting today, people across India will be able to send money through WhatsApp 💸 This secure payments experience makes transferring money just as easy as sending a message. pic.twitter.com/bM1hMEB7sb

— WhatsApp (@WhatsApp) November 6, 2020

WhatsApp began testing its Unified Payments Interface-based payments service in India in 2018, which allows users to use the messaging platform to send and receive funds. The test is limited to approximately one million users as it awaits regulatory approval. The company said that the payment function was designed in cooperation with NPCI using UPI, which is India’s first real-time payment system to implement transactions with more than 150 supported banks.

WhatsApp considers India as its largest market, with more than 400 million users, and it will compete with India’s payment service app i.e Paytm, along with other apps like Google Pay, Amazon Pay, PhonePe- owned by Walmart. In June this year, WhatsApp launched WhatsApp Pay in Brazil, the first country to widely promote the service.

Here’s how to use WhatsApp Pay:

• You must first add a payment method by clicking on payments from the three-dot icon on the main screen to start using WhatsApp Pay.
• You should select a bank and verify it via SMS to set up the UPI ID.
• You should select the attachment icon and then click on the payment option from chats to make payments.
• You need to enter the UPI PIN to complete the transaction.
• WhatsApp cooperates with five leading banks in India, including State Bank of India, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, Axis Bank, and Jio Payments Bank.
• To send money on WhatsApp in India, you must have a bank account and debit card in India. WhatsApp sends instructions to payment service providers (also known as also known banks), which initiate the transfer of funds between receiver and sender bank accounts through UPI, WhatsApp said.
• You can also send money to anyone who uses UPI-enabled applications via WhatsApp.
• WhatsApp will enable users to enter a UPI PIN for each payment to enhance the privacy and security of the application. The company stated that payments are designed according to a set of strong security and privacy principles.
• WhatsApp Pay is available for all android and iOS users.
• You will need to update your application to get this new feature.

In the long run, we believe that the combination of WhatsApp and UPI’s unique plan can help local organizations meet some of the key challenges of the current era, including increasing rural participation in the digital economy and provide financial services to people who have never had access before, WhatsApp said.