WebMoney code-protected transaction is used exactly for such cases. You transfer funds to the merchant protected by a code. Funds are withdrawn from your account so the merchant sees that you are a fair customer. The merchant can’t do anything with these funds unless you have received the goods/service you paid for and you will reveal the code to him. In case this measure is not enough, seller and buyer can establish mutual WM trust: http://trust.webmoney.ru/.
(Q) Can I have a third party fund my WM Purse via bank transfer? In other words, can I have my friends send wires to fund my WM purse?
We do not allow this due to AML issues[Anti Money Laundering]. It is typical situation, when wrongdoer publishes bank requisites for his purse funding, and sells prohibited goods or services that way. Who looks guilty in the eyes of public and police? It is e-currency’s company and bank, even if e-currency brand is not mentioned in payment details. To avoid this in WebMoney, we do not publish bank details for public. You should at first authenticate yourself at WM banking site, request a payment and obtain one-off payment number and other details.
(Q) I’m very excited about the new partnership between Webmoney Transfer and Ukash. I see there are over 120,000 Ukash payment/purchase terminals in the UK, Germany, Ireland and Spain where anyone can buy a voucher using cash and instantly load their Webmoney account. If I were to walk in to one of these locations (newsagents, grocery stores, petrol forecourts) and buy a voucher does this method cost extra to fund my Webmoney account?
We work not only with UKash, but with another similar European system - paysafecard. Our fee is 0%, partners mentioned charge from 6% to 7.5%. We found these fees too high and will try to reduce them. Moreover, we are currently discussing an option of adding similar non-bank cards all over the world.
(Q) Ukash makes Webmoney funding available to millions of people who may not have previously had the ability so shop online & spend and transfer money on the Internet. These users often do not have local bank accounts or a wallet full of credit cards. Is this group of ‘unbankable’ people considered one of your target markets?
Of course, unbanked people are one of our target groups, because population of such users grows even in such technologically advanced countries like US.
(Q) In Russia and the surrounding areas, does Webmoney take the place of a regular bank account for many people?
You know, in Russia and CIS electronic bank products came to market in the beginning of century, and we started even earlier. So we has rather fair competition conditions, banks’ lobby in Russia couldn’t kill e-money in a cradle, like it happened in Germany for example. That’s why Russia is a country where several successful e-money systems conquer substantial market share.
(Q) Many people associate digital currency with scams, auto-surf programs, so called ‘investments’ and HYIPs. Does Webmoney Transfer allow HYIPs or autosurf programs?
No, all Ponzi schemes regardless of term (autosurf, HYIP etc) are prohibited; not just prohibited but persecuted. The legal way to lend WM to other WM user is with C-(credit) and D-(debit) purses and services http://debt.wmtransfer.com and http://credit.webmoney.ru ( this service only in Russian at this moment).
(Q) What other payment systems or payment processors would you consider to be the main competition for Webmoney Transfer? Why?
We believe that fundamental contradiction exists between current banking rules, allowing chargebacks, and nature of digital goods with zero cost of making a copy. That’s why we do not consider payment institutions working with banking products as direct competitors. Several e-wallet systems with non-reversible transactions, including DGCs, share our advantages. But just possibility to transfer funds from account to account is primitive; nobody but WebMoney Transfer allows such a big variety of tools and services, the full payments infrastructure.
(Q) I know Webmoney Transfer encourages all users to get verified, but is it required to present all this information in order to open and use an account?
We think that it is of vital property[importance] for electronic money to allow clients to open an account, top it up and buy instantly, without leaving a workplace. And this is a normal usage of WebMoney for most of our users. But to get access to advanced features, especially related with doing business online, you should get verified.
(Q) In reading the application for a WebMoney Transfer Personal Passport, I notice that you require a lot of identifying information including ID number and type, date of birth, place of birth and permanent address. Is it important to users of the Webmoney system that the people they are doing business with are first verified and use at least a Personal Passport? Why is that important?
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