WhatsApp Announces Payments Backgrounds to Personalise Money Transfers with Friends, Family

 WhatsApp introduced Payments backgrounds in India on Tuesday to enhance the money transfer experience on its platform. The new feature aims to offer a personalized payments experience to WhatsApp users. It allows you to select relevant backgrounds when you send money to your friends or family using WhatsApp Payments. The experience is live for Android and iPhone users in the country. WhatsApp says that the central idea through the Payment backgrounds feature is to add an element of expression when users exchange money on the platform with their friends and family.

Initially, WhatsApp has added a list of seven backgrounds from which you can choose the most relevant when sending money to your loved ones. There are also few theme-based backgrounds, including the one you can choose specifically when sending money to your sister in Rakshabandhan (available Sunday, August 22). WhatsApp has also added backgrounds that you can use to send payments on birthdays, holidays, and travel.

How to choose a payment background on WhatsApp

You can select a payment background when you make a new payment on WhatsApp by tapping the backgrounds icon on the 'Send Payment' screen. Once you tap on that icon, the app will show you the list of available backgrounds at the bottom from where you can choose the one that matches your payment theme. You can also add a note along the bottom to describe the reason for your payment or highlight your expression.

Once this is done, the recipient will be able to see the background along with the amount of the payment they have made.

"With Payments Backgrounds, our effort is to bring excitement to everyday payments through WhatsApp and enable our users to express themselves if they wish, through a range of emotive themes denoting celebrations, affection, warmth or fun," said Manesh Mahatme, Director of WhatsApp Payments, in a prepared statement. "We believe that sending and receiving money is so much more than just a transaction. Often it's the stories behind the exchanges that are priceless."

Mahatme said, "We look forward to creating more features and functionalities and continue making payments on WhatsApp an interesting and interactive experience."