Apple is in talks to develop a mobile person-to-person payment service similar to PayPal’s Venmo, according to a new report from The Wall Street Journal.
The service, which could launch in 2016, would allow a user to send money from his or her checking account to another user through an Apple device.
Apple is reportedly in talks with U.S. banks like Chase and Capital One about the service, but it’s unclear if any agreements have been made just yet. There are still technical details that need to be worked out, such as how Apple’s service would fit into existing banking infrastructure.
The payments service could be an extension of Apple Pay, which allows users to make purchases by hovering an iPhone or Apple Watch near a compatible payments terminal. Apple may consider integrating with a service called clearXchange, a service similar to Venmo that’s already offered by banks in the U.S.
Facebook and Square have also launched their own peer-to-peer payments services in recent years.
Apple declined to comment on the Journal report.
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