nine months after the suspension of the P2P payments in the country by the central bank of Brazil, licenses relating to WhatsApp's use for the transfer of funds among Visa and MasterCard cardholders under the acebook Pay program has been granted to Facebook, Visa and Mastercard.
The launch of the service in June meant that Brazil was the first country to get a nationwide rollout of WhatsApp's long trailed payments services, according to finextra.com.
However, the central bank stepped in to close it down ten days after its launch because it did not possess the necessary licenses and further pointed out competition and data privacy as other reasons. Now, the bank has revoked its decision, and WhatsApp payment can now resume its operation.
Since then, the central bank of Brazil has set up its PIX instant payments platform, which allows citizens, companies, and government entities to make payments through mobile phones, ATMs, and online regularly.
Brazil in focus
Population: 211,049, 527
GDP: $1.84 trillion
GDP per capita: $8718
