Being able to choose one’s favorite payment method should be a breeze in this modern day and age. If the central bank of Brazil has a say in the matter, choices will remain limited forever.
Several payment options exist all over the world.
No More WhatsApp Payments in Brazil
Mobile solutions are incredibly popular, primarily where younger generations are concerned.
In Brazil, one of those mobile solutions is now officially banned by the central bank.
No one will be able to use WhatsApp payments moving forward, unless a workaround is found.
WhatsApp’s payment feature across the entire of Brazil has been suspended indefinitely due to “antitrust concerns”.
This decision is made after both Visa and Mastercard requested Brazil’s central bank to stop payments and money transfers through this mobile app.
All in all, WhatsApp payments haven’t been around all that long in Brazil.
The feature was only introduced earlier this year by parent company Facebook.
What this means for the future of WhatsApp payments globally, remains to be determined.
The offering is very popular in other countries, primarily in India.
For small business owners in Brazil, this is another setback in their quest to build an online presence.