WebMoney
 | |
| Online payment solution | |
| Founded | Moscow (1998) |
| Headquarters | Moscow, Russia |
| Parent | WebMoney Transfer ltd |
| Website | WebMoney official site |
WebMoney Transfer commonly known as WebMoney is a global settlement system and environment for online business activities, established in 1998. The system claims to have more than 30 million users. Although WMT Originally targeted mainly at clients in Russia and the Former Soviet Union, it is now used worldwide. WebMoney Transfer Technology is based on providing all its users with interfaces that allow operating and controlling individual property rights for valuables (assets), stored at the specialized entities — the Guarantors.
The system enables Internet users to conduct safe transactions in real time using WebMoney units (WM-units). No bank account or credit card is required to open or operate a WebMoney account. Dozens of thousands online shops and services accept WebMoney payments[1] WebMoney Transfer also provides online financial services, P2P payment solutions, internet based trading platforms, merchant services and online billing systems.
The owner and administrator of WebMoney Transfer system is WM Transfer Ltd. An unrelated Japanese company provides a prepaid cards service using the same name. The Japanese service only supports accounts denominated in yen.
Guarantors
Guarantors (underwriters) — participants of the System located in various jurisdictions and store valuables of various legal nature. Specific features of transactions with proprietary rights for values stored by each Guarantor, as well as their measurement units and the Guarantor’s obligations to exchange those proprietary rights with the currency of the country of its registration, are set out in the Agreements adopted respectively by every member of the System in the course of registering a ‘Purse’, which serves as the accounting attribute of the proprietary rights.
WM-units
The System supports several types of Purses, that keep record of valuables property rights of corresponding types:
- Z-Purse WMZ — Goods certificate, in United States dollars
- E-Purse WME — Electronic money in Euros
- R-Purse WMR — Bearer's bank cheque in Russian rubles
- U-Purse WMU — Bank account claims in Ukrainian hryvni
- B-Purse WMB — Electronic Belarusian rubles
- K-Purse WMK — A receipt for the right to receive EKZT from the guarantor for a certain amount
- G-Purse WMG — Warehouse receipt for stock gold in a certified storage area
- V-Check WMV — Prepaid transfer in Vietnamese đồng
- X-Purse WMX — The equivalent of 0.001 bitcoins
Also, Kyrgyzstani som and Uzbekistani som-equivalents (WMS) and (WMY) were introduced, but canceled by central system authority.
The units of measurement of the valuables' property rights stored by the guarantor are WebMoney Title Units (WM) of the corresponding type.
Fee
Signing up and receiving WebMoney (WM units) from other users is free. Sending WM units to other accounts incurs a fee of 0.8% but not less than 0.01 WM and not more than the maximum fees outlined below:
WMZ 50
WME 50
WMR 1500
WMU 250
WMB 100 000
WMG 2
WMX 50
Funding and withdrawal
Funds can be deposited to WebMoney accounts by online and offline bank transfers, debit and credit cards, prepaid cards and vouchers, money transfer systems, by conversion from other electronic currencies, using retail stores, exchange offices and cash-in points.[2] It is also possible to purchase WM prepaid cards in order to fund a purse.
Withdrawing fund is allowed to bank cards (binding of card is needed), to virtual cards, via wire transfer, by conversion into other electronic currencies and using exchange offices.
Locations
The main address for technical support is given in Moscow; the main proprietor and administrator is located in London.
The funding and withdrawal points are located in 90 counties.[3]
Security
WebMoney transactions do not require a credit card or bank account, are final, and cannot be retracted.
Security is provided on the system level. While performing transaction, the funds are always either on WM-wallet of the sender or WM-wallet of the receiver with no intermediate state in the system. It is conceptually impossible to lose WM-funds. WebMoney has a list of security settings to protect accounts. It includes three main authentication methods:
- Login and password
- Files with secret keys
- Personal digital certificates
And two additional methods:
- SMS verification code
- E-NUM, internal service for generating single-use passwords
E-NUM is a two-factor authentication service alternative to sms. API of the service is free and available to owners of external websites. E-NUM provides the second security factor relevant for any closed on-line services and web areas, where secure authentication is necessary (e.g. online banking). E-NUM generates a single-use password, based on the “challenge-response” method and displays the only correct response code, works on all platforms and suits smart wearable devices.
FCA licence to issue e-money in EU
In November 2015, WebMoney Europe Ltd. with head offices in Cambridge, United Kingdom announced the FCA licence acquisition that allows to issue e-money in all countries within the European Economic Area.[4]
Criticism
- It doesn't accept Western Union or Paypal transfers. There are some third parties offering such services for commission fees.
- The routine need to use third parties for many operations with WebMoney raises the question of trust and the possibility of fraud.
Prosecution in Ukraine
In 2013, the Ukrainian government had seized testing computer equipment from the Ukrainian guarantor and blocked 60 million UAH residing on guarantors’ accounts in Ukraine. Officials of the Ministry of Revenues and Duties of Ukraine claimed that there were major irregularities in the operations of the company and the rules of the operation of the payment system were not agreed with the National Bank of Ukraine. The property of the guarantor is to be transferred to the courts upon the completion of the investigation.[5] A statement made by Ukrainian Officials brands the use of Webmoney as illicit and illegal. One example being Online Pharmacy transactions. On March, 17 the Ukrainian guarantor`s bank accounts were completely released by Ukrainian legal decision.
The service is listed by a Ukrainian private initiative for the boycott of Russian goods and services.
See also
References
- ↑ http://www.megastock.ru/Default.aspx?lang=en
- ↑ WebMoney Transfer. "Top-up method". Retrieved 13 December 2015.
- ↑ https://geo.webmoney.ru/wmobjects/?lang=en
- ↑ Milacheva, Tatiana (17 November 2015). "WebMoney Gets a European License and is Expanding Its Presence in the European Union" (Press release). London: GlobeNewswire. Retrieved 18 November 2015.
- ↑ "UAH 60 mln of Ukrainians blocked in WebMoney by tax authorities". QHA. Retrieved 19 December 2014.