Bloomberg: TikTok is developing a P2P transfer feature, and the official says it has not been tested yet

According to Bloomberg, TikTok is developing a "peer-to-peer" payment feature that allows users to transfer money to each other via private messages, with evidence coming from the code of the U.S. version of the TikTok App. The interactive design of this feature is quite complete, allowing the recipient to "click to accept" to complete the payment, while the sender can attach a text message. Changes in transaction status will be communicated to the sender in real-time via push notifications, providing an experience similar to PayPal's Venmo.

TikTok responded that this feature "is not currently in testing in any market," and the report also noted that there are no signs guaranteeing that TikTok will definitely launch this feature. However, the existence of the code, combined with TikTok hiring for financial services positions in multiple markets including the U.S., indicates that the company is exploring this direction.

TikTok has accumulated payment experience in Southeast Asia, with its payment product TikTok Pay operating in Vietnam, Malaysia, and Thailand, primarily used for shopping payments on TikTok Shop. In the first half of 2025, Thailand's TikTok Shop GMV reached $5.419 billion, a year-on-year increase of 162%. TikTok has over 1 billion monthly active users globally, with about 170 million users in the U.S. Following the news, stocks of companies like PayPal saw a significant drop that day. Analysts believe that if this feature is implemented, it will have a direct impact on Venmo's position in the peer-to-peer transfer market in the U.S., where Venmo has about 67 million monthly active users. However, regulatory factors remain the main challenge for TikTok in expanding its payment business in the U.S.