Facebook users will now be able to send money to their friends using its Messenger app, the social network’s first foray into peer-to-peer money transfer.

Facebook用户现已可以利用其应用软件Messenger向好友转账了，这是这家社交网络首次推出个人对个人资金转账业务。

The Silicon Valley company will compete with payments providers such as PayPal and Square, and potentially large banks, after it announced that users will be able to upload a Visa or MasterCard debit card to their Messenger app to send payments to their Facebook friends for free.

Facebook宣布，用户可以在其Messenger上绑定Visa或万事达(MasterCard)借记卡，免费向Facebook好友转账。这家硅谷公司将与PayPal和Square等支付服务供应商以及大银行展开竞争。

In a product that appears similar to Paypal’s popular Venmo app, US users of Facebook will be able to send money from Apple and Android devices and desktop computers in the coming months.

在未来几个月中，Facebook美国用户可以通过一款新产品（看上去类似Paypal颇受欢迎的Venmo应用），使用苹果(Apple)和安卓(Android)设备以及台式电脑进行资金转账。

The company stressed it had enabled security features including a PIN and touch ID on iOS devices, after Venmo was accused of making it easy for fraudsters to steal from a users’ bank account.

Facebook强调，这一产品启用了安全功能，包括密码以及iOS设备的指纹识别。此前，Venmo就因用户银行账户信息容易被盗而受到批评。

“We use layers of software and hardware protection that meet the highest industry standards,” Facebook said in a blog post. “These payment systems are kept in a secured environment that is separate from other parts of the Facebook network and that receives additional monitoring and control. A team of anti-fraud specialists monitor for suspicious purchase activity to help keep accounts safe.”

“我们使用了多层软件和硬件保护，已达到最高行业标准，”Facebook在一篇博客中称。“这些支付系统处于安全环境中，与Facebook网络其他部分分离，并受到额外的监测和控制。反诈骗专家团队会监测可疑的购买行为帮助确保账户安全。”

Facebook is the latest technology company to try to enter the financial sector, after Apple launched its payment service Apple Pay last year and Google rolled out Google Wallet.

Facebook是最新一家力图踏足金融业的科技公司，苹果去年推出了支付服务Apple Pay，谷歌(Google)也推出了谷歌钱包(Google Wallet)。

The Financial Times reported last spring that Facebook was readying itself to provide financial services in the form of remittances and electronic money. The company discussed partnerships with at least three London-based start-ups that offer international money transfers, which could prove popular with Facebook and WhatsApp’s large international audience.

去年春季，英国《金融时报》报道称，Facebook正准备以汇款和电子货币的方式提供金融服务。该公司与至少三家总部位于伦敦、提供国际转账服务的初创企业讨论过合作，此举可能会受到Facebook以及WhatsApp广大国际用户的欢迎。