Facebook is looking to get into banking and dating
Oh Facebook, Facebook, Facebook! What are you up to? New features and new types of ads are coming at us thick and thin. It is hard to keep up with your talent shows and your private conversation video ads. So what are these next moves you’re making Facebook? Banking and dating? What the hell?
Facebook banking
Yep, Facebook has reportedly contacted some large institution banks asking for customer data. The plan, according to The Wall Street Journal, is to offer more financial services to Messenger users. The information Facebook has requested includes credit card transactions and checking account balances. The report in The Wall Street Journal says that Facebook could then use this data to help power Facebook Marketplace, send out potential fraud alerts, and even bank balances in Messenger chats.
The move fits in with Facebook’s overarching strategy for Messenger, which is to turn Messenger into a service-providing behemoth that puts users in touch with whatever it is they need at any given moment of the day. News of this action from Facebook went down well on Wall Street where, after a disastrous week for the big blue that saw over one hundred billion dollars wiped off its stock value, Facebook share prices surged over 3%.
As to whether users will be happy with Facebook having their banking details after so much of their other personal data has ended up in nefarious hands is another matter. Would you use Facebook banking services?
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Facebook dating
The other big Facebook news from the last couple of days is about Facebook’s plans to take on Tinder. The social giant is currently running internal testing on a dating feature that will form a part of the main Facebook app. Facebook Dating could roll out to 18+ Facebook users in the U.S.
According to the info released by serial social media tipster, Jane Manchum Wong, the Facebook dating tab offers a somewhat mature look at dating. I mean who’d use their actual Facebook page to search for a one night stand anyway?
Users opt-in to Facebook dating, and they’re then visible to other people who have also opted in. The big news here is that users decide whether Facebook friends can see if they’ve opted in or not. As Facebook announced back at its F8 Expo, Facebook Dating users will be able to look through Events and Groups based on their interests and then unlock them for dating. When two people with similar interests then find each other, they can open up chats in Messenger or WhatsApp.
Facebook vs Facebook Lite: What are the differences between the apps?
Learn MoreThe good news is that Facebook is not sticking to binary gender options so there will be space for everybody to express themselves as they wish in their search for love. Facebook is also considering limiting the number of people users can show interest in to prevent people from merely accepting everybody in a bid to find someone who likes them back. There is also no current plan from Facebook to show ads on Facebook Dating or charge for premium features, but this could change.
Do you think you’d be interested in using Facebook banking or Facebook dating? Let us know in the comments.
