Facebook shares recover on optimism its Messenger chat app can build closer banking relationships

Social media giant needs to make money from its properties beyond social network since saying last month that sales growth will slow and expenses will climb

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg speaks during the annual F8 summit at the San Jose McEnery Convention Center in San Jose, California, 2018. Photo: AFP

Facebook Inc.’s shares rose on optimism that the company is forging deeper relationships with banks to offer customer-service products via its Messenger chat application, a business that could boost engagement as growth slows on its main social network.

Facebook has for years worked to make Messenger a natural place for consumers to communicate with businesses, aiming to replace email. Customers who opt in can already receive some airline boarding passes and receipts from PayPal transactions on Messenger. To do the same with major banks, Facebook has been trying to convince them that the conversations will be secure and customers’ personal data won’t be used in advertising.

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