Nowadays, there are plenty of options if you wish to send money online to friends and acquaintances, but it’s always simpler if both the sender and payee are using the same platform. And that’s why the ubiquity of Google is a clear cut advantage that could facilitate seamless flow of money through Android. Something Google is paying due attention to.
With the new Google Payment API, any app or website will be able to charge you via your Google account (analogous to how you can conveniently sign-up using Google account in various apps and websites). Many of us who have used made purchases on Playstore must already have a credit card connected with Google account. Or if you’d rather trust Google with your credentials than third-party apps, you can save some on Google and then use it to make purchases in Apps or outside them at third party websites. Google will handle processing and security and is already testing the new API with select partners.
Also, moving forward, you can simply transfer money to your friends directly from Google Assistant. Just say “send $xy to YZ person”, authenticate the payment with your fingerprint sensor and you are done.
And thirdly, Google is also expanding Android Pay, a mobile payment solution that lets you pay at NFC terminals using credit card stores on your phone, to five more countries – Brazil, Canada, Russia and Spain, and Taiwan. That takes the total to 15. Hope Google expands Android Pay to India soon since NFC payment terminals are slowly but steadily catching up.
