Tales from the Support Desk

Posted on the 13th December 2022 in Team blog

We may be in the run-up to Christmas, but the Money Mover Support Desk is as busy as ever. 

Back in June 2020, we took a look at our Customer Support Top 10 - the most popular queries that we were receiving from our customers.  Now, 2 years on, out of lockdown and with a more extensive set of functions and features, we thought it was about time to take another look and find out what our customers have been asking.

“How long does it take to open a Money Mover account?”

Once you've set up your profile and added a business or personal account, we'll start reviewing your application immediately. If we need to clarify something or require some additional information, we'll contact you by phone or email. In most cases, we open new accounts within 48 hours. If at all possible we'll get you up and running within the day.

“I’m applying for a business account. Why do you need all this information?”

We need to gather information about your business and the individuals who control the business. This helps us get to know you, provide the service you need, prevent fraud on your account and ensure we comply with our anti-money laundering and KYC (know your customer) commitments.

Rest assured that we only ask for the information we need to provide you with our service, and we’re fully GDPR compliant.

Unfortunately, there are certain types of business and activity that we can’t support. These can be found here.

If you're a personal customer we just need to verify your identity and address. If you're a UK resident, we may be able to use electronic ID which, in 80% of cases, means we don't need any documentation from you.

“What is a 'penny test'?”

Before we complete the account activation process, we ask new customers who are located in the European Union to make a small initial payment, typically EUR 1 or 1 Euro cent, from their EU bank account to their new Money Mover wallet.  

We do this for two reasons. The first is that it verifies that a new customer has the correct details for their new virtual accounts, and that the customer's bank is able to make payments through to the bank which we use to hold customer accounts.

The second is to protect against money laundering and fraud. Receiving a payment from a new customer allows us to verify the customer name and originating account details, and that the bank account is active.

“Why hasn’t my payment arrived with the recipient yet?”

If it’s only been a few minutes since payment was sent, it’s likely still on its way. 

We send our payments via the SWIFT payment network, The time it takes for the funds to reach your recipient depends on how fast the sending, routing and recipient banks process and send the payment onwards, as well as the time it takes for your recipient's bank to credit the funds to the right account.

“My recipient has received the funds, but they’re $20 short. What happened?”

This is probably a routing fee charged by an intermediary bank linking our bank and your recipient’s bank. Our fee is built into the exchange rate we give you, so we always send the exact amount agreed when you confirm the transaction. 

Routing fees are becoming less common as transparency over international payments improves, but unfortunately, they do still occur, especially for payments sent in USD and AED. 

While it’s not possible to know in advance if a routing fee will be deducted, it’s likely that if you repeat the payment, the same thing will happen. Therefore we recommend adding an additional $20 to the payment to ensure the exact amount arrives with your recipient.

Routing fees can also be taken when you send funds from your bank to us. 

“What if the exchange rate gets better after I’ve booked a payment?”

When you book a payment on our platform, we guarantee the exchange rate in the confirmation by purchasing the currency on your behalf.

While this means that we can’t offer you a better exchange rate if the rate moves in your favour, it does protect against the exchange rate moving against you. 

You can always monitor the exchange rate on our platform using our Rate Alerts.

“Can you track a payment for me?”

We've recently introduced Payment Tracking which is a really powerful new feature that allows you to view the progress of your Money Mover payment in real time.

You'll be able to see information such as the route your payment has taken, any fees or deductions charged by routing banks, when it has reached your recipient's bank and even when it credits your recipient's account.

When you open a Money Mover account this feature is enabled automatically.  To track a payment, simply select the required payment and click the Payment Tracking button next to it.

“I need to make a payment in a particular currency/to a particular country but I can’t find it in the dropdown. Help!”

Money Mover supports all the world’s major currencies and a growing number of minor ones. You can find the latest list of them here.

We also support payments to the main trading countries.

From time to time our customers ask us to help them buy or sell restricted currencies such as Indian Rupee (INR), Indonesian Rupiah (IDR), Malaysian Ringgit (MYR) and Philippine Peso (PHP). You cannot fund these currencies directly. They can only be bought by converting another supported currency and sold back only in exceptional scenarios.

If you need to access a restricted currency then get in touch with our Support Team. We'll do what we can to help.

Remember that, while we may not be able to make a payment in local currency to a country, we can usually send another currency (such as EUR, GBP or USD) instead. Many suppliers in countries with restricted currencies are well aware of the restrictions and are used to receiving payments in other currencies.

Similarly, we are sometimes asked to send funds to countries which we don’t support, such as Iran, Libya, Russia and North Korea. The reasons why we don’t support certain countries are as follows:

• They are subject to sanctions (trade restrictions intended to change the behaviour of a particular jurisdiction or region)
• Their controls against money laundering or terrorist financing are inadequate
• The service providers we work with don’t have a network or relationship in the country

These restrictions also mean that you won’t be able to open an account with us if you live in, or are a citizen of a country we don’t support.

If you can’t find a country or currency then get in touch with us. We’re always happy to assist with specific situations and explain local regulations and restrictions.

“Why can’t you take settlement funds out of my bank account automatically?”

There is currently no link between your Money Mover account and your bank account. In order to settle a payment that you’ve instructed on the Money Mover platform you need to transfer funds from your bank account using the bank details that we give you once you’ve confirmed the transaction. You can also access these from your Wallets.

We do it like this so that our process doesn’t get in the way of the controls and authorisation process that most businesses have in place. Separating our system from your banking service maintains higher levels of security and makes fraud more difficult.

However, Open Banking makes it possible to connect financial technology applications such as Money Mover with bank accounts securely. We’re planning to integrate these standards into our service which means that, if you wish, you will be able to link your bank account with your Money Mover account. This will mean that settlement funds can be debited automatically and opens the door to other time-saving and convenient services. Watch this space for more details!

“Can I hold balances in foreign currencies with Money Mover?”

Yes. It is now possible to hold balances with Money Mover in any of the currencies we offer. Funds are safeguarded by our FCA-regulated e-money partners at a credit institution.

With comprehensive transaction reporting, unique virtual account numbers and the ability to open currency accounts in seconds, Money Mover has become a powerful transactional hub  for international business

“Can I receive funds from my clients and other third parties?”

Yes, you can now receive payments from third parties in 25+ currencies from over 200 countries.

Once your account is activated you can access your own named accounts with dedicated multi-currency IBANs which you can provide to your customers, payers and third parties.

Transactions are easy to reconcile as we supply complete sender and reference information for every payment received into your wallet.