Twitter takes money – BBC

Social network Twitter has learned to transfer money. Users in France can now transfer funds using the tweet. In Russia, you can start a similar service, experts say, but doubt that it will be in demand.

French Twitter signed a partnership agreement with a division of S-money, owned banking group Groupe BPCE – one of the largest country, said on Monday The Financial Times. Now users of the social network will be able to transfer funds to their subscribers. The service will be available to any user who has a bank account and an account in the French Twitter.

«Money can be transferred by a simple tweet,” – said the executive director of Groupe BPCE Jean Yves Forel.

The new service, he said, opens up a whole range of possibilities in terms of payments to the social networks. According to the head of Twitter France Olivier Gonzalez, microblogging service is well-suited to run the payment system, given its “living, public and conversational configuration».

In Twitter France did not specify whether such transactions are visible to the user subscribers who committed a cash payment, in some cases, the application Venmo from PayPal.

This is not the first financial option is Twitter. Earlier in the social network appeared “Buy” button, allows you to purchase items directly from the message. When you click “Buy”, attached to the tweet, automatically opens the checkout page in the online store. As long as the button can use a small percentage of users of the official client for iOS from the United States. But soon, this function will be available to all users.

According to some reports, writes FT, another popular social network Facebook is also preparing to launch a financial service that can be included in the messenger .

According to the source, Facebook began negotiations for a long time, but they were delayed.

While in social networks in other countries there are only more or less close analogues. “In Japan, the Japanese launched a similar service bank through Facebook, and in Russia in 2013, was a joint system” Yandeks.Koshelek “and Twitter, through which it was possible to transfer money from her purse a specific account” – recalls the deputy president of locomotor Bank Andrei Lyushin.

Nothing prevents run Twitter similar service in Russia, according to respondents’ Gazetoy.Ru “experts.

« It is theoretically possible to launch a similar service in Russia, and the law “On the National Payment System” provides a variety of legal registration of variations such relations “, – said the head of the legal department of Lanta-Bank Dmitry Shevchenko. The question is how to identify the clients – both recipients and senders of remittances. “However, these requirements are a worldwide trend, and not only the requirements of the Russian legislation, so if they technically met in France, so it is technically possible for us” – says Shevchenko.

«The development of such services is also possible in Russia, from a technical point of view it is achievable – sure Lyushin. – To date, the payment system for the reception and transfer payments can be integrated with any agent. Also, the bank can take payments in their favor from any terminal, for example QIWI. Question in more privacy. If all items of legislation are met, it is possible ».

Investment Director QB Finance Dmitry Lepeshkin doubts whether such a system is demanded. “Given the rather low financial literacy of the population, – he explains.

– In Europe, transfers via Twitter can give a big boost to the development of charity projects and kraudfandinga, in Russian the same realities of existing systems (” Yandex. Money », QIWI and so on) is enough, so neither business nor the regulator will not move in this direction, at least in the short term».

«Now it is very actively developing various services related to the financial operations on the internet – do not agree analyst “Russ-Invest” Maria Shishkina. – For example, “VKontakte,” for example, launched a money transfer system Mobi Cash, with a limit of 15 thousand operations. Rub. in July this year. Overall turnover of remittances on social networks grow by 50-60% annually. ” She sees an advantage just at Twitter. “Because it’s microblogging service, users often reveal different kinds of applications than the classical social network. Therefore, with proper use of the service, the company can away from other social networks in this segment “- predicts Shishkin.