Meta has failed to launch WhatsApp payments in Brazil as planned due to disagreements with potential payment partners, according to multiple people familiar with the matter today. This means another blow to Meta’s e-commerce ambitions.
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WhatsApp had planned to launch its merchant payment service (p2m) in Brazil at the end of last year, which would be the first time WhatsApp has rolled out payments globally, people familiar with the matter said.
So far, however, WhatsApp has struggled to sign up local partners (who help launch the service and process electronic payments) and await approval from Brazil’s central bank. Brazil is WhatsApp’s second-largest market with 120 million users.
This means that Meta’s entry into the financial services industry has suffered another setback. As originally planned, Meta wanted to use the Brazilian market as a testbed to launch merchant payment services first, and then expand to other markets around the world to further boost the e-commerce business.
At the same time, Meta is also looking for other alternative revenue streams as major products like Facebook and Instagram dwindle in popularity. Negotiations between Meta and the Brazilian payments company stalled on several issues, including what the other party thought was too low a fee for WhatsApp, people familiar with the matter said.
In addition, the Brazilian payment company also believes that Meta’s proposed terms are too harsh, and is concerned that Meta is passing on them certain legal responsibilities related to the initiative. “There is no technical issue. It’s mostly contractual,” said one of the people.
In this regard, Meta’s potential partners in Brazil, Cielo, Rede, and Getnet, all declined to comment.
