Digital currencies like bitcoin and electronic payment systems like Apple Pay are all the rage right now, so it's no surprise to see smaller companies attempting to get in on the action, but the latest may come as something of a surprise. Snapchat, the temporary image sharing app notoriously used as a sexting tool by horny teens, has just announced a new Snapcash money transfer service.
Revealed through a ridiculously OTT music video posted to YouTube last night, Snapcash was developed in partnership with existing digital payment service Square. Essentially it works in an identical manner to Square's Cash app, albeit through the Snapchat interface. Users enter their debit card information in the Snapchat app, which is then securely saved by Square.
When you want to send someone else some cash, you open a chat and enter a dollar sign, followed by the amount you wish to transfer. The money is sent as soon as you hit the send button.
Money transfers are the latest new feature to hit the app following chat conversations and video calling earlier this year. Used daily by millions of smartphone owners, the company founders have repeatedly turned down multi-million dollar offers to sell in order to continue running the app as they see fit.
Snapchat passing over payment handling to a third party may come as something of a surprise, however, as it was lax security at a third party webb app that let hackers walk away with over 100,000 explicit images from users. However, Square has a much better track record when it comes to customer privacy and data security.
Snapcash is currently only available in the US, and only for users over 18 years old with a debit card. There's currently no word on whether the service will be expanded out to other countries just yet, but considering the company is currently valued at a massive $860 million, we doubt Snapchat's ambitions will stop solely in North America.
