WebMoney is a particularly widely used online payment system or e-wallet in eastern European countries. It was founded in 1998 in Russia and is one of the biggest electronic payment processors in Russia even today. WebMoney supposedly has over 44 million registered users with over 300,000 active users on a weekly basis. On the internet, there are over 100,000 estimated merchants that accept payments made via WebMoney.
The origins of WebMoney actually track back to the economic crisis in Russia that persisted in 1998. The use of US Dollar, at this time, had become the norm in Russia since it was more stable while the Russian Ruble kept crashing and fluctuating. WebMoney was developed primarily during this period as a currency exchange platform. In the two decades since its introduction, it has evolved in various ways. The payment system is especially popular in Russia, Uzbekistan and Ukraine. It can be used as peer-to-peer transfer system, or peer to business payment method and also includes an escrow system. WebMoney apps are available for iOS, Android, Windows and Blackberry.
Today, we are going to take a closer look at the applicability of WebMoney in an online casino context. Is this a feasible payment method to fund online casino activity from South Africa? Which South African friendly online casinos accept WebMoney? How does WebMoney work? How can you register an account with Web Money? How do you make WebMoney deposits and withdrawals? Etc.
Which WebMoney Casinos do we Recommend for SA players?
There are a growing number of online casino enthusiasts from countries like Russia, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Armenia and Georgia. These are countries where WebMoney is very popular. In order to cater to players from these nations, plenty of online casinos have onboarded and integrated the WebMoney API on their platforms.
Many such casinos also happen to support players from South Africa. Also, WebMoney is technically available for South African residents as well. This opens up the possibility of South African players using WebMoney as a payment method for deposits and withdrawals at their online casinos.
Why would you choose WebMoney as your preferred payment method being a South African resident? Well, there are numerous advantages to using this electronic wallet. The perks include fast, secure, cheap payments in multiple currencies and even cryptocurrencies. There are several other advantages to using WebMoney which we will touch upon at a later stage.
So, if you happen to be an online casino player residing in South Africa, you may be interested in finding out what are the best South African friendly casinos that support WebMoney. We’ve done all the leg work for you. Our list of recommended SA friendly WebMoney online casinos only include licensed and safe casinos that offer top quality games, promotions and more. So, without any further ado, here are our top WebMoney SA online casinos:
- 1xSlots Casino Review
- Live Casino
- Live Chat Support
- NetEnt Games
- Pinnacle Casino Review
- Popular Games
- Sportsbook and Casino
- Trusted Banking Methods
- PlayOJO Casino Review
- Easy Registration
- No Wagering on Welcome Bonuses
- Popular Slot Titles
- CasinoLuck Review
- Classic Slots
- Live Casino
- deposits by e-wallets: Skrill, Neteller
- EUcasino Review
- 2000 Games
- Same Day Payout
- Trusted Banking Methods
How does WebMoney Work?
WebMoney can be used for a variety of purposes. With a WebMoney account, you can not only fund your online casino activity, but you may also pay various utility bills online, send money to any individual anywhere in the world, pay at physical retail shops that accept WebMoney payments using QR code scanning and pay international online merchants or businesses over the internet.
As a South African resident, you are not going to come across many retailers who accept WebMoney. This is usually localized to Russia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan and other eastern European nations where WebMoney is widely used. However, as a South African WebMoney account holder, you can use your WebMoney wallet for all online payment sending and receiving purposes. It could be a more inexpensive alternative to the likes of PayPal.
All WebMoney transactions are premised around the core concept of an electronic currency. For example, if you were to make a deposit into your WebMoney account of $100, then you would receive the corresponding amount of a WebMoney virtual currency called WMZ credited into your WebMoney account. If you were to make the deposit in RUB then the corresponding amount of a virtual currency called WMR would be deposited into your WebMoney account. Similarly, if you make a deposit using EUR, then the virtual currency would be called WME. WebMoney supports USD, EUR, RUB, UAH, BYN and UZS at this time. Unfortunately, South African Rands are not supported.
Thanks to this kind of segregation, one WebMoney account holder can manage multiple different purses for each currency deposited. Therefore, you can have a separate balance of WMZ, WME, WMR, etc. in one WebMoney account and use the, individually as you wish at different merchants, etc.
Since South African players cannot deposit into their WebMoney wallets directly with South African Rands, they will first need to convert ZAR into USD, EUR, RUB or any other supported WebMoney Fiat currency before it is deposited in the corresponding WebMoney virtual currency. This is probably the biggest draw back of using WebMoney as a South African resident. The currency conversion will attract a conversion fee and WebMoney will charge you an additional 0.8% processing fee for each deposit made to an online casino from WebMoney.
When you withdraw your casino winnings to your WebMoney wallet, the transaction is free of cost. However, if you then proceed to withdraw the funds from your WebMoney wallet to your local bank account, then you may be charged a commission of 2% or 1.5% depending on whether you are withdrawing through a credit card or direct bank transfer.
Opening a WebMoney account in South Africa
On the WebMoney platform, user accounts are referred to as passports. There are several different passport tiers depending on what level of security verification has been completed. When you first register for an account by providing the bare minimum which is phone number and email address, then your passport is an ‘alias’ passport. With an alias passport, you are able to make deposits but you cannot make withdrawals.
In order to unlock the capability to also make withdrawals on your WebMoney passport, you will have to provide certain documentation for account verification. The documentation required may include, but is not limited to a photo ID issued by the government (such as passport, voter ID, drivers license), address proof, proof of payment, etc. Once the verification is complete, withdrawals are unlocked on your WebMoney account.
At this stage, your passport is upgraded from an alias passport to a formal passport and you can link credit cards, bank account, etc and withdraw funds from your WebMoney account. If you wish to withdraw casino winnings to your WebMoney account and then withdraw the funds from your WebMoney account to your local South African bank account, you will need a formal passport.
There is a third passport level which allows for much higher limits on deposits and withdrawals. This may come in handy for high rollers and big spenders, but is not required for the average online casino player based out of South Africa. In order to unlock this passport level, an individual will have to visit a WebMoney office in person for verification and there no office locations in South Africa, they are only in Russia and CIS nations at this time.
So, if you have decided that the perks of using a WebMoney wallet at your online casino outweigh the cons, then you will first need to sign up or register for a WebMoney passport. Below, we provide step by step instructions on how you can register in a few minutes.
- Go the WebMoney website, the website URL is – https://www.wmtransfer.com/
- You can visit this website on PC or mobile to register an new account
- Click on the yellow sign-up button
- Choose your country dialling code from the drop-down menu, for South Africa, it is+27
- Enter your phone number
- Complete the captcha code
- Enter the confirmation code which is sent to your mobile number via SMS and click next
- Enter all other requested details such as email, name, etc. as per official documents and complete the registration process
- Set a password to protect your purse and access it in the future
Confirm your email by typing in the confirmation code emailed to you and linking your email address
Now, an alias passport account is registered. In order to lift financial restrictions imposed on withdrawals, you will need to upgrade your passport to a formal passport. In order to upgrade your passport, follow the steps below
- Login to your WebMoney passport
- Go to the verification centre
- Fill up the form with accurate personal details, ID details and contact details as requested
- Upload scanned copies of ID such as passport, drivers license, voters ID, etc.
- Your account is now under verification and the WebMoney verification team will review your details, check your documents and verify your account
- Once successfully verified and approved, your Web Money account is upgraded from an alias passport to a formal passport.
How to make online casino deposits using WebMoney?
- Login to your online casino account
- Click on the cashier and then go to deposit
- Type in the deposit amount and selectWebMoney as the deposit method
- Enter your WebMoney account credentials to authorize the deposit
- The money is instantly deposited into your online casino account and the balance + processing fee is debited from your WebMoney wallet
How to cashout online casino winnings with WebMoney?
- Login to your online casino account
- Make sure you have sufficient real money balance to warrant a withdrawal (balance should be positive and at least equal to or higher than minimum withdrawal limit of the casino for WebMoney)
- Click on the cashier section and choose withdrawal
- Choose WebMoney as your withdrawal method and enter the withdrawal amount
- Complete the withdrawal request by providing other necessary details as prompted
- Once the withdrawal request is successfully placed and approved, the funds are withdrawn from your casino cashier balance and deposited into your WebMoney wallet. You can proceed to withdraw it to your local bank account or use it for other purposes from the WebMoney wallet.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Using WebMoney
- Maintain different purses for different currencies and use as per your preferences
- Register in minutes and complete the verification process by simply uploading a government issued photo ID
- Low processing fees for deposits and withdrawals when compared to other electronic wallets
- Mobile apps available for Android, iOS, Windows and even Blackberry
- Escrow based secure transactions
- Expense limits setting
- Apply for credit and loans with WebMoney wallet
- Pay utility bills online using WebMoney
- WebMoney supports video identification
- Create Bitcoin Cash wallet in the WebMoney Keeper app
- South African Rands not supported
- Need a formal passport tier WebMoney account in order to process withdrawals
- All deposits and withdrawals are charged processing fees
Frequently Asked Questions about WebMoney
WebMoney has different virtual currencies or units corresponding to underlying assets. For example, the virtual unit for US dollars is WMZ, for Euros in WME and for Russian Roubles it is WMR. This way, you can hold different purses in different currencies under one WebMoney wallet account.
Yes, WebMoney mobile apps are available on the following modern mobile operating systems– Windows, Android, iOS and Blackberry. The mobile app is called WebMoney Keeper.
Yes, South African nationals are allowed to sign up and use WebMoney as an online payment instrument or a peer-to-peer money transfer system. However, SA users will be restricted to a formal passport. For high value transactions, a person will need to visit WebMoney offices in person and these offices are currently only located in Russia and CIS nations.
You can verify your WebMoney wallet by using their state-of-the-art WebMoney video ID system. You will have to ensure your camera is working and clear, you will have to make some gestures in front of the camera as directed by on – screen instructions. Next, you will need to show your ID next to your face and then read out the terms of service aloud. You will get notified when the VideoID process is completed.
You can recover your WebMoney wallet by visiting the website, clicking on login and then using the ‘remind password’ link. The password recovery process starts when you click on this link, proceed as per the on – screen prompts until you are able to reset your password and access your account.