The founders of Payoneer, a mass payout service, were unsatisfied with developments in the global payment industry so they decided to do something about it.
"Technology has been advancing at a dramatic rate, and the world of payments was being left behind," says Eyal Moldovan, vice president of business development. "The industry was in need of 'Pioneering,' and so they came up with the name 'Payoneer.'"
Today, eight years after the company got its start in New York City, Payoneer supports payouts in more than 200 countries and more than 50 currencies.
I'm VP of Business Development at Payoneer and oversee our Commercial Account, which is the fastest growing segment at Payoneer with more than 50,000 new members joining each month.
What is Payoneer? Who should be using your service?
Payoneer is a leading provider of global mass payout services. We provide companies, businesses and individuals with innovative and convenient solutions to send and receive funds. Our services are ideal for anyone looking to send funds across borders or receive funds from companies and businesses around the world.
What sets Payoneer apart from global payment facilitators?
Payoneer fully supports payouts to more than 200 countries, in more than 50 currencies. Our range of services include multi-currency prepaid debit cards and global bank transfers that are localized in more than 80 countries. We provide full support via our in-house multilingual customer support team, offering support via live chat, telephone and e-mail.
Who uses your services the most?
Our services are most used by businesses and individuals who are looking to improve the way they send and receive funds. Examples include companies that need to send funds across borders -- to payees or other companies, and individuals working online such as freelancers, affiliates, developers, sellers and many more.
Payoneer is used in more than 200 countries, and is a primary payout solution in many countries that have under developed payment networks or a need for immediate access to cash in hand.
How does your payout solution work?
Companies that send funds with Payoneer are provided with a business account and access to an online administrator console. They prefund their business account, and use the administrator console to easily add new payees and send individual or mass payouts. This administrator console also provides comprehensive reporting tools, allowing the company to easily view important information such as payout history and account status.
For larger companies we also provide a detailed API, allowing them to easily integrate Payoneer's mass payout services into their daily business operations and automate the entire payout process.
On the receiver end, each payee can choose his or her preferred payout method, allowing for an extremely flexible and convenient payout process. Once they've selected their payout method, they are provided with access to an online Payoneer account where they can easily view their account status, balance, payout history and any other relevant information. They can also use this online account to perform actions such as withdrawing funds to their local bank account, withdrawing funds to their local eWallet and transferring funds to another Payoneer account holder.
Payoneer works with thousands of companies and millions of people across the globe, sending more than $1 billion annually.
How do you ensure transactions through your site and products are secure?
Payoneer strictly complies with KYC, OFAC, AML and the requirements of the Bank Secrecy Act as included provisions in Title III of the USA Patriot Act. We are a registered US Money Services Business and are certified at a Payment Card Industry Level 1 Data Security Standard.
What do you think are the most exciting new innovations when it comes to mobile payment?
The "mobile first" banking approach is very exciting. For example Mpesa, an African eWallet, provides a fully mobile banking service to its users, which for the first time are able to send payments to merchants and other Mpesa users via their mobile device. I do see a trend of local eWallets appearing across the globe, many of which are focusing on mobile.
What do you think is the future of mobile payment? Is paper currency going to be obsolete?
In 50 years we may see the beginnings of the extinction of "paper currency," with digital forms of payment being the only ones that are accepted. One of the main driving forces for this change is more efficient regulation. In Sweden, for example, paper currency is no longer accepted as a form of payment for public transportation.
That being said, paper currency is still strong and I don't see any major changes happening in the near future. In fact the economic crisis in the United States actually caused growth in the use of paper currency.
What's the future of your company? What new services or products are you hoping to offer in the coming years?
At Payoneer we're always working to develop and expand our services, both for companies/businesses and individuals. Localization of payout services is a major reason for our success, so expect to see us adding more countries, more currencies, more mass payout services-- more efficient and convenient ways to send and receive funds worldwide.
What do you think is the biggest misconception consumers have about mobile payments and/or virtual wallets?
The most common misconception or confusion I see is how people define an "eWallet." Is it a mobile service? Does it provide ability to store funds and access them, to both send and receive? We are still in a very early stage and technology continues to improve- the future will be very exciting!
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