Paypal Utilizes Credit Card Machinery for Malaysians to Withdraw Funds
Paypal now allows or so it seems, for Malaysians to withdraw their funds via credit-card management system. Namely the Visa and MasterCard machinery.
This system is often put into place when negotiations with the banking or financial body in certain country failed to make any progress. It is a last ditch effort made to enable users to transfer funds without being subjected to the rules and regulations set by the regulatory body. In Malaysia, that body is called Bank Negara.
If you log on to your paypal account, click on “Withdraw”, you will now see two options. The “Transfer funds to your card” is a newly added feature. It costs 5.00USD per transaction with a limit of 500.00USD.
Initial attempts to withdraw funds this way have not been successful. I am using credit cards issued by the local banks. I made a quick call to their customer service asking for clarifications. Their credit card officer revealed that all local banks have barred this kind of fund movement also used by online sports betting bookies.
This may not be good news. Funds transferred to online sports betting bookies accounts are subjected to the usual “Cash Advance” charges. Current rates are three percent of the total amount and two percent per month until the whole amount is fully paid up.
Looking at the rate things are going, it will not be long before the Banks charges interest for using credit cards to deposit funds INTO paypal. That will be bad.
The current credit card terms and conditions are drawn up and approved by the Bank Negara of Malaysia. Although debit cards use the same Visa and MasterCard machinery, some rules are relaxed to promote the electronic purse culture some time back.
For now, I would suggest using debit cards for Paypal.
Good Luck!
Miserable and Irritatable
January 31st, 2008 at 4:12 pm
Hey there. Came across your blog about paypal. Funds withdrawal to debit card has a limit
Mine is $500 and this is ridiculous if i wanted to transfer more, like 3k for example. So i’ll be charged for 6 times = $30. STupid!
How do you lift the limit ? paypal told me can’t do it coz of country and bank rules and regulation. I called bank negara yet they said there is no limit to bring in money. Anyhow, that lady from bank negara customer service centre does not even hear of Paypal and asked me to verify if Paypal is reliable. Now i do not know whose policy to have such withdrawal limitation. Our country or Paypal themselves who’s playing the who thing.
Kinda fed up….
May 15th, 2010 at 4:11 am
“It is a last ditch effort made to enable users to transfer funds without being subjected to the rules and regulations set by the regulatory body. In Malaysia, that body is called Bank Negara.”
Is that even legal?
Besides, the other central bank that Paypal must deal with is the Federal Reserve System, assuming that their base of financial transactions is in the U.S.A. with its laws.
“paypal told me can’t do it coz of country and bank rules and regulation. I called bank negara yet they said there is no limit to bring in money.”
“Now i do not know whose policy to have such withdrawal limitation. Our country or Paypal themselves who’s playing the who thing.”
Judging on the things I readed, it’s probably Paypal who set the limit.
Bank Negara most likely would want the appropriate documentation and a commission fee, plus the required requirements set by the ‘world / international’ ‘community’ so that Malaysia isn’t excluded by them. Of course unless the ‘world / international’ ‘community’ say no Paypal for Malaysians.
I think the reason Paypal set a withdraw limit, is this: If there’s no withdraw limit (either a low amount withdraw limit or no withdraw at all for an entire country), then accounts of companies like Paypal, Google, and so on can be quickly withdrawn up to the point of being overdraft, so they devise ways to delay the transfer of funds.
Malaysians and people like them (Chinese, Indians, Indonesians, etc) are quite smart and swift in making a profit (and that’s just by using the honest way, not the dishonest way), so if the withdrawers are many and the withdrawn amount is high, can you imagine on what will happen to the accounts of these companies?
And maybe also they were ordered by their superiors to not send money to certain regions (unless it’s ‘aids’ of course
, maybe they’re affraid that Malaysians will become even richer then outcompete them?
Anyway. Visa and Mastercard themself regulary set a daily transaction limitation of U$500 on a single regular card account, so it’s most likely Visa and Mastercard who set the U$500 limit, NOT the country nor the bank.
“Anyhow, that lady from bank negara customer service centre does not even hear of Paypal and asked me to verify if Paypal is reliable.”
There, is Paypal even legal or trustworthy enough if the central bank of a country don’t even heard of it?
You might as well use hawala to transfer money, at least they’re way more honest, friendly, and reliable.