The messaging app will now allow users in the US to send each other money using the Novi digital wallet.<\/b>
\nWhatsApp has partnered with Novi to support cryptocurrency-based money transfers in the US. Novi says its service relies on a stablecoin called the Pax Dollar ( USDP) issued by Paxos. Unlike cryptocurrencies that constantly fluctuate in value, such as Bitcoin and Ethereum, each USDP is equivalent to one US dollar. That makes it easier to use the stablecoin for money transfers. Novi says WhatsApp users will have to create accounts with its service to use this feature, which makes sense, and that it’s looking to \u00ab\u00a0bring Novi to as many places as possible.\u00a0\u00bb Neither company offers any indication of when the integration might expand to other countries, though. If this is the first you’re hearing of Novi, well, it’s probably because it was originally created to serve as the digital wallet for the Libra cryptocurrency Facebook was developing. (Which has since been renamed Diem but still hasn’t debuted 2.5 years after it was announced.) Now the wallet is being tested with USDP in the US and Guatemala. This integration with WhatsApp is Novi’s breakthrough moment\u2014and yet another example of how Meta, the company formerly known as Facebook, can use its popular services to boost its newer initiatives. It’s worth noting that Novi is careful to say on its website that it offers no-fee money transfers via USDP \u00ab\u00a0today.\u00a0\u00bb Presumably the company will have to make (actual) money at some point; whether or not that means fees will be introduced after the service is established is unknown. Meta didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. More information about sending money with Novi through WhatsApp is available via the digital wallet’s website. It will be available to \u00ab\u00a0a limited number of people in the US\u00a0\u00bb to start, per the announcement, and WABetaInfo reports that it can be used on both iOS and Android.<\/p>\n