Signal’s payments feature is now available worldwide, allowing users of the popular encrypted messaging app to send and receive privacy-focused payments "as easily as sending or receiving a message." Signal announced plans to integrate a payments feature into its encrypted messaging app back in April. At the time the company said it was testing a privacy-focused payments protocol called MobileCoin in the UK and planned to expand it to more markets soon.

WIRED reports the MobileCoin wallet integration in Signal is now live for all users globally. As confirmed by MobileCoin founder Josh Goldbard, the global rollout was underway since mid-November, and that the feature is already seeing massive adoption, with thousands of daily transactions. In one-on-one chats, users can access the wallet by clicking on the "+" icon and then "payment." MobileCoin has its own cryptocurrency called MOB. However, as WIRED notes, the cryptocurrency is only supported by a few exchanges like BitFinex and FTX both of which are not available in the US.

Signal says MobileCoin is far more private than Bitcoin as it hides transactions and makes them harder to trace by mixing them up. It also uses a mathematical proof called Bulletproofs to validate a transaction without revealing its value.

“As always, our goal is to keep your data in your hands rather than ours; MobileCoin’s design means Signal does not have access to your balance, full transaction history, or funds. You can also transfer your funds at any time if you want to switch to another app or service,” Signal said in a previous blog post.

The payments feature is currently available in the beta version of the Signal app. If you want to give it a try, you can sign up for the beta program here.

What do you think about Signal's new crypto payments feature? Let us know in the comments below.