Latin American eCommerce platform MercadoLibre is introducing digital business messaging payments with WhatsApp.
In an interview with Reuters on Wednesday (Dec. 7), the CFO of MercadoLibre, Pedro Arnt, revealed that the two companies are partnering to bring payments processing capabilities to WhatsApp’s messaging service users.
“We are in the test phase as one of the partners that processes payments in Brazil. This could be an opportunity for us to leverage WhatsApp efficiently to generate more sales and better customer contacts,” Arnt told Reuters.
The partnered payments tool would allow Brazilian WhatsApp users to find a company’s account using an in-app directory, as well as make digital transactions on the app via credit or debit cards.
“We have a very strong relationship with our consumers because we can solve both their financial needs and their commerce needs. That puts us in a very strong position,” Arnt said.
WhatsApp started rolling out in-app payments to users in India in 2020, and began introducing the feature in Brazil last month (Nov. 17).
“This seamless checkout experience will be a game-changer for people and businesses looking to buy and sell on WhatsApp without having to go to a website, open another app or pay in-person,” Meta, owner of WhatsApp, said at the time.
By expanding digital payment methods for Latin American businesses and consumers, both MercadoLibre and WhatsApp are getting in on a growing digital payment trend at the ground level.
Read more: WhatsApp Debuts Business Search Feature
Also last month (Nov. 17), Meta launched a new business search feature for WhatsApp, allowing users to search for businesses by name or category. The feature is live in Brazil, Indonesia, Mexico, Colombia and the U.K., and has been designed with privacy in mind so that searches cannot be linked back to individual WhatsApp accounts.
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