RBC first North American Financial Institution to bring person-to-person electronic money transfers to Facebook Messenger

TORONTO, Dec. 11, 2013 /PRNewswire/ - RBC today marked a North American first by announcing a social, person-to-person (P2P) electronic money transfer capability for customers to send money to Facebook Messenger contacts, right from within the RBC Canada app. Working closely with Facebook, RBC enhanced its app to allow customers to send an Interac e-Transfer, a simple, convenient and secure way to send and receive money without sharing any personal or financial information, directly to their contacts on Facebook Messenger.

"We are excited to bring this new capability - the first of its kind in North America - to Canada and to our clients, who we know are avid Facebook users," said Dave McKay, group head, Personal and Commercial Banking, RBC Royal Bank. "An Interac e-Transfer is typically a result of a social interaction, such as paying your friend for concert tickets or dinner. Our social P2P solution provides our clients with the added simplicity, convenience and choice to bank in the manner in which they interact on a daily basis, with the security they expect from RBC."

Up until now, sending an Interac e-Transfer required the recipient's email address or a mobile phone number. Now, through the RBC Canada app, clients simply select a friend or family member from their Facebook Messenger friend list, transfer the funds and provide a message for the receiver. The receiver will receive a message in their Messenger inbox, and will be directed to log in to the Financial Institution of their choice to deposit the funds, just like with any Interac e-Transfer today. This new capability is seamlessly integrated into RBC's existing mobile app, providing clients with greater choice and convenience in how they bank and transact with RBC.

"We worked closely with RBC to make it easier for people to send person-to-person money transfers to contacts on Messenger in a safe and secure way. Every day, 9.4 million Canadians use Facebook on their mobile device to connect with people they care about, and this new app provides a meaningful service for RBC customers," said Jordan Banks, global head of Vertical Strategy and managing director, Facebook Canada.

As part of RBC's continued commitment to support the well-being of kids and youth, starting today, RBC will donate $1 for every Interac e-Transfer messaged via Facebook in support of Kids Help Phone, up to $100,000.

This new capability is available now on iPad, with iPhone coming in February 2014 and other platforms later in the year. To download the RBC Canada app for iPads for free, visit the Apple store and download the app directly to your iPad.

Today's announcement is another step in keeping RBC at the forefront of mobile commerce. In July, RBC unveiled the RBC Secure Cloud (patent-pending) solution that allows clients to more safely and securely pay for purchases using their mobile devices, keeping sensitive client data secure with RBC in the cloud, not on the phone. The vision for RBC Secure Cloud is to work on all phones, with all carriers, all financial institutions, all card products, all merchants and include value-add solutions.

About RBC and Payments Innovation
RBC is at the forefront of payments innovation to the Canadian marketplace. We provide industry-leading mobile banking flexibility and convenience to clients through RBC Mobile Apps - available for Android, BlackBerry, iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad and Windows 8 - backed by our RBC Online Banking Security Guarantee. Further information about RBC mobile solutions is available at www.rbcroyalbank.com/mobile.

ABOUT RBC
Royal Bank of Canada (RY on TSX and NYSE) is Canada's largest bank as measured by assets and market capitalization, and is among the largest banks in the world, based on market capitalization. We are one of North America's leading diversified financial services companies, and provide personal and commercial banking, wealth management services, insurance, investor services and capital markets products and services on a global basis. We employ approximately 79,000 full- and part-time employees who serve more than 15 million personal, business, public sector and institutional clients through offices in Canada, the U.S. and 44 other countries. For more information, please visit rbc.com.

RBC supports a broad range of community initiatives through donations, sponsorships and employee volunteer activities. In 2012, we contributed more than $95 million to causes worldwide, including donations and community investments of more than $64 million and $31 million in sponsorships.

About Interac Association and Acxsys Corporation
A recognized world leader in debit card services, Interac Association is responsible for the development and operations of the Interac network, a national payment network that allows Canadians to access their money through Interac Cash at 60,000 Automated Banking Machines and Interac Debit at 766,000 point-of-sale terminals across Canada. Interac Flash, a secure contactless enhancement of Interac Debit allows Canadians to pay for items instantly with their Interac chip debit card at a reader that supports Interac Flash. Interac Association was founded in 1984 and is comprised of a diverse membership that includes banks, trust companies, credit unions, caisses populaires, merchants, and technology and payment related companies.Other related services offered by Acxsys Corporation, whose shareholders are the architects of the Interac network, include: Interac Online, for secure online payments made directly from a bank account; Interac e-Transfer, for the transfer of money from one person's bank account to another person's bank account, currently available through over 200 financial institutions; and international services, which provide Canadian cardholders with point-of-sale access at nearly 2 million U.S. retailers, and PULSE, Discover, Diners Club International and UnionPay cardholders access to ABMs in Canada.

SOURCE RBC