Facebook turns WhatsApp into a shopping hub with virtual storefronts

Facebook has slowly but surely been looking for ways to monetize its investment in WhatsApp, adding new several features for businesses over the past few years. Now the company is turning it into a straight-up shopping hub — in a few countries, at least. Facebook introduced Shops in 2020 as a way to turn Facebook and Instagram pages into digital storefronts, with a particular emphasis on small businesses. The company noted at the time that the feature would be coming to WhatsApp (and