Facebook Messenger hits 1.2bn monthly users

In 2014, Facebook took a tough decision to separate Messenger as a standalone app drawing much apprehensions from all quarters but Mark Zuckerberg proved every one wrong with the super success of his messaging platform. Achieving another milestone, the social network has announced that Facebook Messenger now has more than 1.2 billion monthly users, adding 200 million new users in last eight months.

Anand Chandrasekaran, Director, Facebook said, "On behalf of the entire Messenger team, we’d like to thank our growing community of more than 1.2 billion people who use Messenger every month. We’re grateful that you continue to use Messenger to stay in touch with the people and businesses that matter to you most."

Ever since Facebook turned its messaging feature into the standalone Messenger app, the company has beefed up the platform with games, video calling and stickers. Facebook has launched M suggestions, group payments, and Messenger Day, in the past few weeks alone.

Facebook attributes the recent growth to the expansion of Messenger Lite, the version of the app launched last fall for slower connections and older phones, as well as the rapid expansion of new features.

David Marcus, head of Messaging products at Facebook, also took to Facebook to celebrate the milestone. "I keep on hearing powerful stories about how our product is becoming a more important part of your daily lives. So from all of us here at Messenger, a heartfelt thank you."

Notably, the latest milestone comes just a week ahead of the company's F8 developer conference, where the social networking giant is expected to introduce many new updates for the platform.