Venmo is a mobile payment service based and used in America. Founded in 2009, it has been owned by PayPal since 2012. Both iPhone and Android phones can be used to pay using Venmo. It aims at the quick and easy exchange of money directly between people. In this article, we will see about ‘Where Can I Use Venmo?’.
Venmo can be used to transfer money between friends and family, from customers to stores, etc. Some brands and retail stores that accept it’s payments include Abercrombie and Fitch, Forever 21, Footlocker, Grub hub, Hulu, Lululemon, Uber Eats, Urban Outfitters, etc. Venmo credit and debit cards can also be purchased. it also deals in cryptocurrencies.
About Venmo-
Venmo was founded by Andrew Kortina and Iqram Magdon Ismail in 2009. When it began, it aimed at being used in situations where friends and family wanted to split the bill. People having Venmo accounts can transfer funds to each other using a mobile phone application as long as both the sender and the receiver live in the United States. Before 2015, transactions between customers and business chains, and retail stores were prohibited. In 2016, selective stores started using it. Today, all businesses that use PayPal can use Venmo. In 2020, it also started allowing its users to sell and buy cryptocurrencies.
How it works-
it has a mobile app that can be downloaded. The user has to create an account on it that contains their basic information and bank account details.
- The user must have a valid American mobile number and email.
- This account holds balance for the user. They can link this account to their bank account and credit or debit cards. Some providers charge an extra fee for using credit or debit cards.
- The users can share funds with each other, and the transfer is instantaneous, not taking more than 30 minutes.
Social Networking on Venmo-
When a user makes a transaction, it is shared on their news feed or with their network of friends. Venmo has three types of feeds- Worldwide, friends only, and personal. The default feed for all transactions is World comprehensive feed. The user can change the feed where they want the transactions to be shared. Social interaction on the app, in the comments, is encouraged. Venmo can be linked with Facebook to easily connect with friends and family.
Features of using Venmo and its advantages-
- Venmo’s low business fee ensures that the receiver, which may be friends, family, small businesses, retail stores, etc., receives a larger share of the money.
- Touch-free transactions are now possible through it. Each user has a unique QR code that can be scanned to transfer the funds.
- Using Venmo’s feeds, friends can discover and share their new favourite local and neighbourhood spots and small businesses. A lot of small businesses now use it as one of their methods of payment. For new beginners in business, setting up a business profile on it can help get them discovered and help grow their business.
- Using them, it is easy to split bills when you’re in a restaurant or movie theatre. It only takes a few taps. The app also keeps track of where the user spends their money. This helps the user manage their expenses.
- The transactions made using Venmo are secure and encrypted. This protects the user’s card and bank data. If there are insufficient funds in the user’s Venmo account, the app itself pulls the required amount of money from the linked bank account.
- The user can choose the feed where they want to share transactions. Whether they want it to be public, share it with friends or keep it a secret between the receiver and them.
- Using the it’s Debit Card has many advantages including cashbacks when shopping with it. The cash is deposited right into their Venmo account. If a user loses their card, they can easily disable it using the app, restricting any further loss.
Conclusion-
Venmo is a peer to peer money transfer platform. The users can share money quickly and easily. It has features of social interactions and chatting in comments.
Frequently asked questions
- Are Venmo and PayPal the same?
PayPal has been the owner of Venmo since 2012. It is a part of PayPal’s larger family of brands. Both these apps can be used to make payments via a mobile application. They allow the users to send and receive money easily and quickly.
- Is it important to have a bank account for using Venmo?
All users using Venmo have a separate balance that helps them make purchases while using the app. But it has to be linked with a bank account for withdrawal of cash. Linking a bank account is also important because in case the Venmo balance is insufficient, the app itself pulls the required amount from the bank account.
