Paysafecard
Paysafecard (as a brand stylized in lowercase) is a prepaid online payment method based on vouchers with a 16-digit PIN code, independent of bank account, credit card, or other personal information. Customers can purchase vouchers at local sales outlets and pay online by entering the code at the checkout of the respective website (e. g. an online game). Paysafecard codes are "not" designated to be passed by mail or telephone. Paysafecard is issued and distributed country-wise; cross-border and cross-currency usage is possible within some limits. The scope of services and partner webshops varies by country . In most countries, a personal account called "my paysafecard" for uploading PINs is available. Starting in Austria in 2000, as of 2018 paysafecard is available in over 40 countries. Two former competitors, Dutch "Wallie" and British Ukash, have been absorbed into paysafecard. In 2013, paysafecard was acquired by British digital wallet provider Skrill, and in 2015 as part of the Skrill Group by the "Optimal Payments Group", a global online payment processing provider regulated in the United Kingdom. Optimal Payments subsequently rebranded as Paysafe Group. Name: paysafecard and Paysafe. While the brand name of the payment method has always been  paysafecard, in practice it is often shortened to "Paysafe", the "card" part also being translated into other languages. In 2015, paysafecard became a part of the multinational "Optimal Payments" online payment corporation, which subsequently rebranded as Paysafe Group. The group now directly offers certain products and services under the "Paysafe" brand. Paysafecard, however, continues to be a subsidiary brand of the Paysafe Group in its own right, alongside some others, like the digital wallets Skrill and Neteller. Some sources erroneously interpret "Paysafe" to be the name of the company originally issuing the "paysafecard" product, and sometimes suggest this to be  the core company of the Paysafe Group. Geographical extension. As of 2018 paysafecard is issued in over 40 countries—covering most of Europe and North America, Australia and New Zealand, and some countries in Western Asia and South America. Countries with paysafecard available include Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Croatia, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Kuwait, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Mexico, Montenegro, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Saudi Arabia, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, the United States and  Uruguay. Acceptance. Web offers payable with paysafecard include online games, social media, telecommunication, music, and others. The scope of websites accepting paysafecard varies per country for several reasons. The most widespread use are online games; for example, League of Legends accepts paysafecard in 41 countries as of 2018. Examples of other partners accepting paysafecard in 20 or more countries include PlayStation 4, Steam, Guild Wars, Second Life, Skype, Facebook and Newegg. History. Early years. The company behind paysafecard is based in Vienna, Austria. It was founded in 2000 by four Austrians, including the first CEO Armin Sageder, as "paysafecard.com Wertkarten  AG" ("paysafecard.com prepaid card Inc."), later transferred into a GmbH, a private limited company. Technical partner providing expertise and the original hardware was IBM Austria. The following year, paysafecard also launched in Germany. In 2004, co-founder Michael Müller assumed the role of CEO. In 2005, paysafecard received an EU funding under the "eTEN" program supporting electronic services with a trans-European dimension. Subsequently, paysafecard launched in Slovenia, Greece, Slovakia, Spain and the United Kingdom. In 2008, British subsidiary "Prepaid Services Company Ltd." received an EU-wide e-money licence by the British Financial Services Authority (FSA), later the Financial  Conduct Authority (FCA) under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000, expanding a "small e-money issuers certificate" valid for the United Kingdom in 2006. This authorised the company to issue e-money throughout the European Union. Also in 2008, paysafecard Switzerland obtained a license as a financial intermediary. Acquisitions. In August 2011, paysafecard absorbed Dutch competitor Wallie. In February 2013, Skrill, one of the largest payment services providers in Europe completed the acquisition of paysafecard.com Wertkarten AG. A year later, CEO Michael Müller left paysafecard and handed over to his brother Udo Müller. In November 2014, Skrill acquired British  paysafecard competitor Ukash and merged it into paysafecard. In August 2015, Skrill group competitor "Optimal Payments" group completed the acquisition of Skrill group, including paysafecard, and subsequently rebranded as "Paysafe Group". Functionality. Basic function. Core of paysafecard is a 16-digit PIN, sold (most usually) on a printout, a pre-printed prepaid card, or as a digital information online. In the respective countries, paysafecard is available in demoninations ranging from 10 to 100 euros, United States dollars, pounds sterling, and Australian dollars, and approximately equivalent sums in other currencies, e. g. 100-1000 Norwegian kroner. When paying in an online  shop, the user enters the 16 digit PIN, and the amount tendered is deducted from the paysafecard balance. Hence, the same PIN code can be used multiple times until the full balance has been consumed. For larger sums it is possible to combine up to ten paysafecard PINs. The current balance of each paysafecard as well as its transaction history and production date can be viewed at the official site by entering the respective 16 PIN code. Business model and fees. The paysafecard company earns varying proportions of merchants' transaction volumes, shared with the distribution partners. They do not charge  any fees to the customer for purchasing and using paysafecard, as well as checking the balance of a PIN or its payment history online, but at the following situations fees have to be paid / will be deducted: Issuing. In contrast to in-house vouchers and prepaid products, paysafecard is sold and accepted at distinct companies ("Third Party Billing"). For this reason, dealing with them is a banking transaction and requires either a banking partner or a banking licence. In the beginning, paysafecard was issued by the BAWAG P.S.K. in Austria and the Commerzbank in Germany. Since 2008, paysafecard's subsidiary  company "Prepaid Services Company Limited" holds a licence of the Financial Conduct Authority (resp. its predecessor Financial Services Authority) "to issue electronic money (e-money) and provide payment services", valid for all countries in the European Economic Area. Therefore in those countries, paysafecard is issued by "Prepaid Services" without external banking partner. Further, Swiss paysafecard subsidiary "paysafecard.com Schweiz GmbH" is a licensed financial intermediary in Switzerland and issuer of the product also in other countries, e.g. in Australia. In the United States, payment regulations require an external banking partner issuing paysafecard, a role assumed by "The Bancorp Bank". Distribution. In  the beginning, paysafecard was sold as pre-printed scratchcard. Starting in 2002, paysafecard is usually sold as a printout called "eVoucher" by the company, a uniquely numbered receipt from an in-store sales terminal. Paysafecard is distributed country-wise by varying external partners, which is why also shop types offering paysafecard vary by country. Typical examples include newsagents, petrol stations, post offices, pharmacies, supermarkets, electrical retailers and vending machines. The world-wide number of points of sales sums up to 600,000. Limitations. Paysafecard has limitations manifesting especially when used for online gambling. Payments (thus also deposits in gambling accounts) with  paysafecard are inherently limited to the amount of €1000; for classic paysafecard (not "my paysafecard") this amount has been lowered to €250 in 2016 due to compliance regulations. Many other online payment methods allow a multiple of those amounts. Also, in contrast to other payment methods, accountless paysafecard does not enable a customer to withdraw money. However, a withdrawal to "my paysafecard" is possible and supported by several online casinos. Unlike credit cards, paysafecard does not give the opportunity to overdraw your fundings, which may be appreciated as a means of spending control. Additional services. The company offers  supplementary services to classic paysafecard, especially in most countries an online account called "my paysafecard" to upload PINs and to do repeated payments more comfortably. At the payment checkout of a webshop, customers may choose between entering a PIN and signing in to their "my paysafecard" account. The account also includes a loyalty program called "my PLUS" - doing payments will earn you points that can be exchanged for different benefits. In several countries, paysafecard also issues a prepaid "paysafecard Mastercard". Security. Paysafecard is a payment method that enables the customer to stay anonymous not only to the merchants, but also  with respect to the payment provider. The amount of money exposed to loss by accident or fraud is limited to the denomination of the voucher purchased; no bank account or credit card data are put at risk. Nonetheless, there are varying instances of abuse: Paysafecard sets clear that PINs are only to be entered at authorised online shops, and never to be passed in any other way. The payment method is never used for governmental fines or reminder fees. Awards. From 2009 onwards, paysafecard has won several "Paybefore Awards" (since 2021 "Pay Awards"), issued by the US "Paybefore" media group , a daughter of Informa, with a focus on prepaid electronic payment solutions. The first of those awards was 2009 "Best Non-U.S. Prepaid Program". Other examples include 2012 "Most Innovative Prepaid Solution Europe" and 2016 "Best Online or Mobile Commerce Solution". In the annual contest "Austria’s Leading Companies", awarding top businesses in all states of Austria and the entire republic, paysafecard has won 1st places in Vienna in 2015 and 2017, respectively ranking 3rd and 2nd in Austria overall. In the 2018 Austrian "Great Place to Work" contest, paysafecard won 1st place in the category "New Working World and  Quality of Living", as well as 10th place among all medium-sized companies.