Discover Payoneer, the payment service that enables cross-border money transfers and destroys stereotypes

Payoneer ins and outs: payment system guide. Source:?unsplash.com

Working full-time at the office is not the only option for stable profit. Many people prefer earning money in a flexible way. Various types of remote professional activities allow working from home. Writers, IT professionals, teachers, psychologists, consultants, sales managers, or bloggers all have the opportunity to work from any place. E-commerce is also a great combination of stable income and flexible working hours.

Numerous online and mobile payment platforms significantly expand the frameworks of business cooperation. Employers are not limited to those narrow field professionals who reside in their native country. The whole world is a big talent pool now. The only question is which payment option is the best. PayPal has been one of the most popular services so far. However, many organizations now turn their attention to Payoneer.

What is Payoneer

Payoneer is a global payment system mostly used by small and medium-sized businesses to transfer money to their international staff.

Those may be freelancers, web developers, and medical trial candidates. They receive an opportunity to cooperate with their employers remotely and receive regular or one-time payments in USD or transfer money to their local currency accounts. Payoneer also facilitates payments from integrated mass payout partners, such as vacation rentals, e-commerce, and stock photography marketplaces.

For organizations, Payoneer is a great way to avoid extra costs from wire transfers or international cheque deployments. They can use it to pay whole affiliate branches as well as individuals working on projects across the globe. The payment system is also frequently used by Amazon sellers as an alternative to PayPal.

This payment solution is not anything like the usual mobile or web-wallets freelancers often resort to. The account is tied to the physical Mastercard debit card. Many employers who use Payoneer provide an application form at their websites. Employees then fill in their personal data and a shipping address. Shortly afterward they receive their bank cards via local post.

The Payoneer Mastercard allows all the usual financial operations such as money withdrawals, transfers to the owner’s debit account in a local currency, payments at retail stores, e-shopping, etc.

Road to success

The idea of the service belongs to the successful Israeli businessman, Yuval Tal, who founded the company in 2005. Since 2010, Scott Galit has served as the CEO of Payoneer, while Yuval Tal remains the company’s president.

Payoneer has received a total of $270M in funding from 30 VCs and about 90 “angels”. It has 17 international offices with 1200 employees worldwide. The estimated number of customers is nearly 4 million. The company earns approximately $500 million a year.

Last year, it was ranked №13 in the CNBC Disruptor 50 List. This annual rating praises those businesses that bring innovation and change to everyday lives. They empower communities and individuals to transform their lives with technology.

The famous Amazon platform has recently listed Payoneer as a vendor payment service provider. The company started its way up the e-commerce ladder slowly, from offering its services directly to vendors. Only after it became popular among vendors, did the business representatives meet with Amazon management and offer their official cooperation.

How to use Payoneer

Using the service is quite simple. After receiving a card, the cardholder can request payment by inserting the name or company title, and a working email of the payer. Then they may submit the payment details (amount) as well as supporting documents (invoice, payment statement, etc.). Amazon sellers have the option to link their existing shops to the Payoneer account automatically. They don’t need to request payment for every purchase.

Another usage way is for freelancers to indicate their Payoneer account details as the main payment option to their employers. Most web-based professional platforms include secure resources to link an account to the individual login. Then there’s no need for users to request payments.

Usage of the card is not free of charge, though. Users pay annual fees of $29.95 as well as $29.95 for activating the card outside the USA (one-time payment for initial use). If you need to have the card reissued, it will cost you $12.95.

There are also fees for every payment. Standard money load takes 2 working days and costs users $2, while an instant money transfer is more expensive – $5. The commission fees (up to 3% of the sum) may be paid by both parties depending on their agreement. However, usually, the employer takes care of that cost.

Service charges include?additional fees for checking the balance in ATM, money withdrawals, and even the decline of a cash withdrawal request due to insufficient funds. If you wish to withdraw money in local currency, you can choose the exchange rate. Either Mastercard rates or local bank rates may be applied. Users can also withdraw money in USD where applicable. For some countries, it is possible only by visiting bank branches in person.

Expanding the network of users is promoted by a referral program where each cardholder can earn $25 for their friends joining the service.

Payoneer: pros & cons

Summing it all up, Payoneer has both pros and cons.

? Payment account is linked to an internationally accepted debit card.
? It is cheaper than wire transfers.
? Businesses can expand their activities globally and easily pay their freelance professionals in USD.
? It is user-friendly and simple to apply.
? Many popular companies and platforms support this payment type.
? It is reliable, secure, and trustworthy.

? There are many applicable fees that are quite competitive and yet too expensive for some users.
? Customer support level is not that great and it doesn’t work 24/7.
? The option of money withdrawal into a local currency account works only for those accounts that coincide with the cardholder’s name.
? PayPal doesn’t support Payoneer for withdrawing funds.
? If you wish to withdraw cash in other currencies than USD, you’ll lose a significant sum on exchange and transaction fees.
? It is hard to calculate the exact maximum sum to withdraw in an ATM in local currency – and if you guess wrong, you’ll pay an additional fee for the decline of the cash withdrawal.
? Fees for the decline and checking account at the ATM are unreasonable.

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