Meta’s crypto wallet Novi launches on WhatsApp. Meta, the crypto wallet owned by the social media giant, is launching the ability to send and receive money via WhatsApp today.
There's a new way to try the @Novi digital wallet. Starting today, a limited number of people in the US will be able to send and receive money using Novi on @WhatsApp, making sending money to family and friends as easy as sending a message. 💸💬 pic.twitter.com/dGz3lejri7
— Stephane Kasriel (@skasriel) December 8, 2021
It comes six weeks after the company launched a pilot for the cryptocurrency wallet, which will not interfere with the messaging app’s privacy features. The service is initially only available to a limited number of users in the United States.
“We’re still very early in the Novi pilot journey, so we made the decision to test this new entry point in one country to start and will look to extend it once we’ve heard from people what they think of this new experience.”
-Kasriel.
Diem and Meta’s crypto wallet Novi
The launch comes after plans for the company’s digital coin, Diem, got caught up in regulatory hurdles, forcing the company to seek a way to launch it that was more compliant. Ultimately, the company partnered with stablecoin provider Paxos.
The company previously launched a similar non-crypto-based service on WhatsApp in India called WhatsApp Pay, which floundered after competition from Google and local player Phone-Pe.