Google bans loan applications on the Google Play Store

Google has banned high-interest consumer loan services from the App Store, in a move to improve financial services and their quality on Android devices. The tech giant recently banned apps from offering personal loans with an interest rate of 36% or higher in the Google Play App Store. This move brought the technology giant into a battle against the companies and entities that provide these services on smartphones.

The shift was implemented in August with Google's app development guidelines update for Android, angering lending companies. “Google Play developer policies are designed to protect users and keep them safe,” a Google spokesperson said. “We have expanded our financial services policy to protect people from deceptive and exploitative personal loan terms.”

Payday loans are actually banned in more than a dozen states that have interest rate caps, but are allowed in other states and countries. This new policy will force the owners of lending applications to either adjust their interest rates and charge lower profits, or to exit Google Play and provide their services through their websites while providing their applications on third-party stores. This step raises dissatisfaction with observers who assert that Google, Amazon, and Apple currently control many industries, even loan services, in which they can influence the rules of the game, hinder competition, or direct companies that provide services to a specific action or approach.

#Google News #Google #GooglePlay Store