Sunday, March 25, 2007

google-bank

Currently many people have Google advertising on their web sites, it may even be that a majority of the serious Internet users host Google advertising. Given that Google is already writing a cheque every month to many people, it wouldn't be difficult for them to change the amount in response to a funds transfer request. Depositing a cheque in a foreign currency can incurr $25 in bank fees (that's what the Commonwealth Bank of Australia charges me), this is a great impediment to international trade in small values. When Google already has an office in a country and writes cheques in the local currency it would be very easy to have that cheque include funds transfers too.

One significant advantage of Google payments would be the fact that Google doesn't write cheques for less than $100, so someone who earns $2 per month through Google adverts will be waiting a long time before they get a cheque - but if someone has an item that costs a small amount of money (EG an online service that costs a few dollars a month) then the user would be enticed to use it.

Currently many people don't place Google adverts because they believe that it would take them an unreasonably large amount of time to reach $100US. But if they could spend the money in small increments on other online services then it would be more enticing.

It seems to me that Google is the only organization that is both capable of running an International online small-payments system and which would be trusted by most people.

If you like this idea please post a comment.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Google Checkout already exists. This proposal would just need Google to support unified Google Checkout and Google Ads.

Anonymous said...

Walmart has tried several times to start their own bank and each time they do, the larger banks fight this and successfully petition the FDIC (in America) to not grant them insurance, which means they won't get a bank.
Why does everyone trust Google just because of its name?

Anonymous said...

Google can do direct bank account payments (avoids the cheque fees) and will pay in local currency to many countries (avoids the foreign currency fees); I suspect they'd rather keep doing this than get into something that isn't their core business.

Mark Herpel said...

You may be right on the money with this one:
Google Gets E-Money License From FSA (United Kingdom)

http://digitalmoneyworld.com/google-gets-e-money-license-from-fsa-united-kingdom/


Google Payment Limited, authorized, for issuing electronic money.

462517 - Google Payment Limited
Current status: Authorised
Effective Date: 19/03/2007

Anonymous said...

With Google Checkout already done its only a matter of time.

Anonymous said...

GO FOR IT GOOGLE! I'M IN!
i shure hope so, it would be grand.
it reminds me of one portal that used to exist in the 90's that had a credit system where you could trade earned points for cash or items from associated e-shops, the points could either be bought or earned much like second life does now and there even was a paypal like way of giving some of your points to people you chose. damn dotcom bubble, they got assimilated by some corp, terminated the service, lost users and then bankrupted with the burst.