to instantly read 150+ free stories & 250-word summaries of all our stories

Chat and Pay

WhatsApp picks UPI for payments

Facebook-owned WhatsApp is working on launching payments in India. UPI appears to have won over wallets as the mechanism

04/04/17

Arundhati Ramanathan

WhatsApp’s UPI choice is led by the fact that all other payment systems would hamper user experience

Wallets could have been favourable but the RBI’s draft guidelines make it an unviable option

Picking UPI would also help Facebook get on the right side of the government

UPI is a fledgeling system and it’s free. So WhatsApp won’t be able to make money using it

Whatsapp.jpg

Want to read a free 200 word summary?

WhatsApp, the Facebook-owned messaging app, is working quietly to launch person-to-person payments on its platform within the next six months, said four sources with knowledge of the matter. The initiative is seen as strategic for Facebook and currently being driven out of the company’s headquarters in Menlo Park, California. Its career page lists, among other…

Read the full story. Subscribe now.

Also read our exhaustive coverage about Future of Retail, Ride Sharing and Oyo

Why subscribe? Let us explain.

Already Registered?

Related stories

More stories in /Reportage & /Technology

See all in Business & Technology

This story is for subscribers only.
or

Read the full story. Subscribe now.

Also read our exhaustive coverage about Future of Retail, Ride Sharing and Oyo

Why subscribe? Let us explain.

The selected story is available only for paid subscribers. Might want to change your mind!

Subscribe now

Already Registered?

Questions?

What is The Ken?

The Ken is a subscription-driven media site. We write one story a day (weekdays only). These stories have sharp, original insights on technology, business, science and healthcare from India.

Why do I have to sign up to read your stories?

Our stories are not free. Well, some select stories are. But, a significant part of what we write at The Ken is for subscribers only. We put in a lot of effort and resources in writing our stories and believe that you must pay for good journalism.
Hence, our three plans. 1) The annual membership
2) The free sign up
3) The recurring quarterly subscription

On journalism and why you should pay for it, if you haven’t already seen it, here’s a great explainer from John Oliver.

So, one must pay for journalism?

Yes.

How many stories will I get if I take an annual membership?

828+ stories.

And, in the free sign up?

Four stories every month.

Do I get a refund?

We allow you to sample our journalism for free before signing up, and after you do, we stand by its quality. But we do not offer refunds.

I am not getting my daily emails. Do I have to whitelist emails from The Ken?

An added benefit of your subscription (free/paid) are the daily personalised emails. These emails, at times, might end up in your spam/junk folder due to emojis, attachments or images. In case you’re not receiving these emails, it might help to whitelist us. If the problem still persists, write to us at [email protected].

Why am I unable to access the archives?

Full and unrestricted access to our archives is a feature of our annual membership.

My payment is not going through, what can I do?

Please write to us at [email protected] detailing the payment error or queries.

See all FAQs

    See all results for Ken

    No results found for Ken.