Google Pay takes on Venmo with updated app and peer-to-peer features

A revamped Google Pay app rolling out this week will include bank accounts, peer-to-peer payments, and personal finance features.

Why should we care?
The new Google Pay App is aiming to become an “all encompassing money app,” per a report from The Verge. While checking accounts won’t roll out until next year, the tech giant is adding a roster of new capabilities, including peer-to-peer payments (including group payments), opportunities to select deals and discounts, as well as personal finance insights. Google Pay, effectively, is following the Venmo playbook, along with the planned checking accounts it will offer with its network of partner banks. It will also provide integration with Gmail, which will allow Gmail users to scan their inboxes and photos for receipts. Google’s soon-to-launch banking service, which is reportedly called Plex, will handle basic checking and savings in the app. “We were looking to make banking more relevant for the mobile-first generation,” Caesar Sengupta, general manager of payments at Google, told CNBC.