What is Paysafecard?

This payment system originates in Austria. Paysafecard was founded in 2000. Customers can get the card within Austria as well as in other countries worldwide. Basically, this is a prepaid card that requires no bank account to function. That to say, users do not need to share their personal data.

The card itself is a voucher that includes a PIN code made of 16 digits. It is possible to buy the card across physical points like gas stations, shops, etc. Currently, Paysafecard has over 650,000+ locations.

Later, the Paysafecard has become a part of Paysafe Group that also owns Skrill and Neteller. The Paysafe Group, in its turn, is a payment provider based in the UK. Thus, Paysafecards are available with the following nominals GBP10, GBP25, GBP40, GBP50, GBP75, and GBP100.

What are the benefits of Paysafecard?

There’s a Paysafecard prepaid card powered by Mastercard that allows making payments just like a credit card. To keep the account full, customers simply transfer some amount from the Paysafecard account to the prepaid card. Then consumers are free to use the card to pay online (or offline).

Also, Paysafecard has a free mobile app to use. With its help, customers can check the closest location, where they buy the voucher. Also, users can check their current balance. Another benefit of the Paysafecard lies in the possibility to pay in the foreign currency.

How to use the Paysafecard

To use the Paysafecard, the customer has to buy the special voucher with the 16-digit PIN in one of the offline points of sale. As the shopper makes purchases online, s/he uses the code from the voucher to pay. To check the remaining balance, the consumer can use the online app. If there is enough money, s/he can use the current voucher to make other purchases. Also, if it’s a high ticker purchase, the customer can combine up to 10 vouchers.

What merchants can benefit from Paysafecard?

Of course, any online merchant can make use of this payment system. Yet, there are some particular business types, that are recommended to offer Paysafecard among other solutions. Among them are online dating, gambling, games, and travel business types.

Business model and rates

The Paysafecard company earns varying proportions of merchants’ transaction volumes, shared with the distribution partners. They do not charge any charges to the consumer for buying and employing Paysafecard, as well as checking the balance of a PIN or its payment history online. Nevertheless, fees apply in the following situations:

• 12 months after purchasing Paysafecard the company charges the users an administrative fee of €3 (or like sums) on remaining balance monthly, which will be automatically deducted from their credit.
• A reimbursement of credit remaining on a Paysafecard PIN requires the customer to provide their personal details, a copy of a valid form of photo identification, bank account details and the details of the Paysafecard PIN in question. Usually, a reimbursement fee will be deducted from the remaining Paysafecard credit.
• For payments in a different currency than associated with the PIN obtained, Paysafecard will charge a fee of usually 2%.