Facebook ups its ecommerce game by trialing payments for Pages

It’s no secret that Facebook wants to start handling your money: the social network began allowing users in the US to send money to each other through Messenger last year, and also tested a ‘Buy’ button for businesses in July 2015.

Now, TechCrunch reports that Facebook is trialing payments in Thailand by letting users pay for products on Pages directly through a service called Qwik using their credit card, debit card or through online bank transfers.

The company is reportedly testing the payment service with several top Facebook Pages in Thailand that boast millions of fans. TechCrunch’s sources also said that the social network plans to extend its trials to other countries in Southeast Asia over time.

It’ll be interesting to see how this plays out. Enabling payments will allow Facebook to go up against the likes of messaging apps like Line and WeChat, which are popular in Asia and support services like booking movie tickets and hailing cabs.

But Facebook also has a solid platform for businesses to promote their products and interact with customers through Pages. Allowing these partners to make money through its own network, where shoppers can easily browse items and receive updates, could help Facebook grab a piece of the mobile payments pie in Asia.

We’ve contacted Facebook to learn more and will update this post if there’s a response.