SnapChat's peer ePayments system is a crazy idea

SnapChat's peer epayments system is a crazy idea – and that's just what the industry needs

Square and SnapChat's peer-to-peer payments system, SnapCash, is a crazy idea, but the epayments industry needs crazy ideas if it is to grow.

As revolutions go, this one is taking a while; since 2010 Jack Dorsey’s Square has been revolutionising how we manage money electronically. And it’s been a hard nut to crack.

Square hasn’t yet changed the epayments market – at least not as much as many would have expected – but in many ways that’s not surprising. epayments are still new – we don’t know what form it will eventually take.

Square is still in the discovery phase. So far, they've released six different services, and shelved one or two of them. This week, they announced their latest experimental service – SnapCash.

Working with SnapChat, Square has developed a peer-to-peer payments service that sits within the ubiquitous app. With SnapCash people will can use their Square account to send cash to other SnapChat users.

With 100 million users, Square is hoping that they can expand their user-base and also tap into the instant response/reward mentality of SnapChat. This concept also appeals to the makers of SnapChat. Indeed, during the announcement this week SnapChat were keen to emphasise the service’s quick and fun nature,

“The product you’re seeing today is fast, fun, and incredibly simple. After you enter your debit card, it’s securely stored by Square, who will swiftly process your payment and send cash directly to your friend’s bank account. Just swipe into chat, type the dollar sign, an amount (e.g. $11.25), and hit the green button.”

SnapCash may work, or it may not – in the long run that doesn’t really matter. What matters is that Square is experimenting with its services. By releasing different products and services it’s challenging the traditional payments industry. By experimenting with different payment methods they are getting closer to defining the epayments industry.

The lessons learned from this and other Square experiments will help the epayments and peer-to-peer payments industries grow.

Links for this week cover the banking experience design, Norway's beautiful new passport designs, and Disney's UX tipping point

#Mobile

You (by which I mean, Americans over the age of 18) can now send cash by SnapChat

Let's just hope that the money doesn't disappear with the message

#eCommerce

Banking: from the Experience Design perspective

It's almost a cliche at this point, but banking is ready for significant disruption

#Data

A brief history of version control

Now, can we all agree that the save button is an anachronism? (via Filip)

#User Journeys

Why metaphors (design, verbal, and social) matter in the user experience

A short and informative video by Ideo's Michael Hendrix on the value of metaphors to designers, UXers, and, of course, us content-ers

#Experience Design

What happens when large corporations embrace the user experience

"The UX Tipping Point is the moment when an organisation no longer compromises on well-designed user experiences" (via Filip)

#Beautiful Web

Passports can be beautiful – Norway's redesigned passports are a work of art

Even the security features are things of beauty

#Internet of Things

Can IoT, programmers, and big data be unethical?

We've covered this on the site before - but the ethical questions surrounding IoT and big data aren't going away

#Digital Transformation

Warning: Contains cat gifs

With gaudy colours and animated gifs, Businessweek is redesigning the magazine cover (via Filip)

Illustration: Patrick Cusack