Facebook Messenger’s payments feature has expanded to allow payments across multiple users in a group message. The new feature is available now in the US, but Facebook has yet to give any word on when it may be available in other territories. It’s available on the mobile Messenger app, and in the desktop version of Messenger on Facebook’s website, both through the normal avenues one would use to set up a payment or make a money request. As with normal person-to-person payments, group payments are mostly automated, and will not require a password or charge a fee. The debit or credit card on file for a user will be used automatically and securely for the transaction.
The feature is fairly simple to use; the person requesting the money simply has to tap on the plus (+) sign in a group conversation, find the payments icon, then pick who they’re going to request money from or send money to. The payments are managed within the conversation, with messages indicating the payment’s status. Whether giving or receiving money, users can specify an amount for each participant, or pick an amount to split evenly among the chosen users, or everybody present in the message, with an option to choose whether or not to include themselves. Users can also specify what the payment/request is for, in a note along with the payment or money request.
The feature allows users to set up a group payment on whatever terms they want, including splitting up large amounts, or requesting a fixed amount per person. Once a payment is sent, the other user(s) will receive it instantly. Requests, on the other hand, can be monitored just as easily. The message thread will keep track of who has paid up and who hasn’t, and a user only needs to tap on Request Details to ensure that their request did indeed reach that person in the thread, and verify how much they asked for. As with person-to-person payments, however, requests cannot be cancelled, and received money can only be declined if the user has yet to link a debit or credit card with their Facebook account.