At launch, the service supported cards issued by Banco do Brasil, Nubank, and Sicredi, so long as they were issued by Mastercard or Visa.
The Central Bank of Brazil asked both payment processors to stop money transfer activities through WhatsApp or face fines.
According to the Central Bank of Brazil, the suspension will allow them to evaluate any risk the service might pose to Brazil’s payment systems and to figure out whether it meets all the necessary rules, particularly when it comes to “competition, efficiency and data privacy” concerns.
As for Facebook, Bloomberg says the bank’s decision took it by surprise since the company had been in regular contact with its authorities until the feature launched. A spokesperson told the publication: “Our goal is to provide digital payments to all WhatsApp users in Brazil using an open model and we will continue to work with local partners and the Central Bank to make this possible.
“In addition, we support the Central Bank’s PIX project on digital payments and together with our partners are committed to working with the Central Bank to integrate our systems when PIX [Brazil’s proposed instant-payment system] becomes available.”
