Despite some senators in the US disagreeing on Meta launching its digital currency products, the development of the social media giant’s digital wallet Novi continues.
The head of Meta’s cryptocurrency and fintech unit Stephane Kasriel,, officially publicized that Meta’s messenger subsidiary, WhatsApp, has started testing transactions through Meta’s Novi wallet.
The new feature is available for a limited number of people in the U.S enabling users to send and receive money on WhatsApp immediately and with no fees.
Meta has been able to test and learn which features and functionalities are “most important to people” since it introduced the Novi in mid-October. Using Novi doesn’t affect the privacy of WhatsApp personal messages and calls, which are always end-to-end encrypted.
The head of WhatsApp at Meta Will Cathcart confirmed the news on Twitter, noting some U.S. users can now send and receive money with Novi on WhatsApp.
Previously known as Facebook, Meta officially launched a digital currency pilot in collaboration with major crypto exchange Coinbase and stablecoin firm Paxos in October. The pilot initially rolled out in the U.S. and Guatemala, using Pax Dollar,which is a dollar-pegged stablecoin issued by blockchain trust company Paxos.
