We distribute expenses and send the money we owe to our friends from the mobile phone itself. Bizum has become an essential application but it is not the only one and there are very interesting alternatives such as Verse . Verse is a mobile payment application between individuals, one of the alternatives that competes with Bizum and that has the advantage of having a European license without its use being restricted to Spanish banks.
Verse may not have the level of fame that Bizum has achieved in recent times, but the mobile payment application is a good alternative that differs in some aspects from how Bizum works. Verse is free and immediate and we can make money transfers in certain European countries without costs or commissions.
What is Verse and what is it for?
As we have said in the introduction, Verse is a mobile payment application in particular. We can use it regardless of the bank of which we are clients. We can use Verse regardless of our banking identity and its main function is to send money to friends when we go out to dinner, when we want to share expenses, when we have to pay for a gift. Verse is designed for small everyday transactions where we can pay for our share of dinner, make a jar for a friend’s birthday present, and even create cost-sharing events.
Verse is available in Spain and it is an app of Spanish origin but also in other countries. In Germany, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Slovakia, Spain, Finland, France, Greece, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, the United Kingdom and Sweden. Although we use it with euros, we must take into account that it is also available in pounds, Danish and Swedish crowns and in zlotys.
Advantages of using Verse
One of Verse ‘s advantages over Bizum is that it doesn’t matter which bank you are. All we have to do is sign up and use their app available for iOS and Android. Just as Bizum is only available for Spanish banks and we cannot consider it an application in itself, since we operate through our bank’s application, Verse is a mobile application that allows us to pay and request money quickly, safely and without commissions regardless of the bank to which you belong.
Currently Verse can be used in Germany, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Slovakia, Spain, Finland, France, Greece, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal and Sweden. In addition, we can make payments and receive them in any of the legal tender currencies of these countries: Euros, Danish Kroner, Swedish Krona and Polish Zlotys. In this sense Verse becomes a very good alternative to Bizum, since with Bizum if we are abroad we can only send and receive money from mobile phones that are linked to a Spanish bank account.
Verse, like Bizum, is a free service. While at Bizum we associate our mobile phone with our bank account and operate through our side’s mobile application, with Verse once we download the application we have to link our card to send money to any of our contacts. In addition, unlike Bizum, the money we receive reaches the application’s wallet and we are the ones who have to transfer it to our bank account. A point that perhaps not all users are very happy with, but that does not have a major inconvenience, the only thing that has to be done is one more step than in Bizum that the money arrives directly to our bank account.
How it works and how to use it
We can send payments to whoever we want if we previously add our cards or bank accounts. You just have to add a credit card and go to the menu to choose “pay”, indicate the amount, choose who we are going to pay, add a note or a comment and the money will be sent to that person. It is compatible with VISA and Mastercard cards although we can use it even if we don’t have a card as long as our friends have made a payment to us because we will have a balance that we can reuse in our account to send someone.
Once we have money in the account, we can withdraw it to the bank. As they explain from their website, we add a bank account and choose the option “withdraw to your bank” to be able to send the money we have in “Verse balance”. The money will arrive in a variable time that can be from a few minutes to a maximum of 48 business hours. We will see it reflected in the account in a few days.
What should we consider? As in the case of PayPal, Verse does not work with payments that we receive immediately in our bank account, but rather it is stored in the app until we transfer it later. It is added to what is called “Verse balance” and then transferred to our account.
functions and features
Verse allows us all kinds of options to send money to our friends directly, but we can also create events, make groups with people close to us, or make purchases online safely, just as we do with PayPal.
Purchases in online shops
With Verse we can also make purchases in online stores using a virtual MasterCard card that can be activated for free. With this card you can make any type of purchase online at any establishment or website that accepts MasterCard as a payment method.
In addition, it is also possible to make donations to any NGO that has a Verse account and makes its $Versetag public. Functions that Bizum also allows us to do in online shops and associated NGOs.
Create groups in Verse
With Verse we can create groups to share expenses with different circles of people. If we plan to take a trip with friends, share common expenses with our roommates or have a shared account on a TV streaming platform such as Netflix or Disney…
We simply have to go to “Create a new group” in the groups icon and it will be similar to WhatsApp because we add a name, a photo and a short description. Once done, we can add all the people who are part of it. We can have up to fifty friends for each group so it is very easy to share expenses for a trip or to organize a party among all.
As they explain from the app, the objective of this section is not only to share the shared expenses , but that everything is registered so it is interesting for groups of friends with whom you always go out or with your roommates. They explain from their help website: “The purpose of the ‘ Groups ‘ function is not only to control shared expenses. At Verse we go one step further and offer you a complete solution. With a single click you can add expenses, pay a debt or ask to be paid. Everything is registered in the Group and can be consulted at any time”
Create events with friends
Beyond groups, we can also create events if we want something specific. In other words, you create a group for your roommates or old friends, but you can also create an event in Verse to organize a barbecue at a specific time and share expenses among everyone, making it clear how much you have to pay.
There are many cases in which this is useful: corporate events, parties with friends, crowdfunding, donations, tournaments. Simply go to the “ Events ” section with a calendar icon. Here we tap on “+” to add a new one and fill in all the information we want it to have. When we have it, we can invite friends through a link that we will send from any messaging app or through the Verse application itself if we already have them as friends in it.
