Pony up, nerds

Remember that one time you and your friends got Sarah the gift she always wanted (a potato-powered clock)? Remember how Steve dodged contributing because he "didn't have a PayPal account or whatever"?

Well, time to pony up, Steve.

PayPal are reviving their money pool feature.

Where'd it go?

You could be excused for not remembering this but PayPal actually already this feature. 'Tis was back in 2017 and 'tis was called 'Money Pools'.

The feature was designed to help groups pay for things by pooling their money together. Someone would create a pool page, describe the goal (e.g. a trip, a charity donation, potato clocks, etc.), and invite friends to join to contribute.

Sounds like a safe bet for a payment provider. So, why did it go away?

In 2021, Money Pools were sent into EOL. PayPal didn't provide much insight into the reasons behind this decision, though we can make some broad assumptions:

• Money Pools was likely a small, inconsequential use case for the product which may have distracted them from bigger (and more profitable) use cases.

• PayPal already enabled money transfers between users, so Money Pools seemed redundant.

• As usual with fintech, complex compliance and regulations probably played a role in the dismissal of the feature.

Why bring it back?

Like Eminem, Money Pool is back by popular demand, per TechCrunch.

John Anderson, SVP of Consumer at PayPal, clarifies that "Everyday life is all about connections, whether it’s chipping in for a group gift or planning a trip with friends and family. PayPal understands this and aims to make those moments easier."

Remember how Steve dodged contributing to Sarah's gift? Well, bad news for Steve: this Money Pool 2.0 allows non-PayPal users to contribute, too. Eat that, Steve.