The only way she could possibly do this was to use PayPal. But she couldn't simply receive the money directly:
"The reason why I can't do it myself, is that PayPal wont allow South African account holders to receive payments, grrrrrr! Poor Boulder has to do it for me, then pay the money across to my brother in the UK, who then has to pay the money across to me in South Africa and I will draw the cash for Harrison. He doesn't have a bank account, he can't afford the bank charges. Bank charges are horrific in this country, making formalised banking inaccessible to the poor. Don't worry, I wont put him at risk by making him walk around with all the cash at once. I'll give it to him in amounts he feels safe carrying around."
So I decided to put another challenge to Tertia:
Is there any chance you could use your influence and large following to pressure PayPal into allowing South African account holders to RECEIVE money as well as sending it. If this happened, we will very quickly have TONS of township entrepreneurs selling beadwork etc etc etc to a GLOBAL marketplace!
This is one of those things that could be so phenomenally viral as well... As soon as a few township entrepreneurs start selling their goods online SIMPLY and EASILY, many many more will become computer literate and learn how to sell their goods on eBay etc.
Sheesh, imagine the interesting blogs that could be written by such entrepreneurs:
"Today I went to ask for a bank loan. I told them how I was going to sell my unique wire-art online on eBay. The woman just laughed at me. Probably because she saw that my Adidas shoes only had 2 stripes left"
Combine township entrepreneurship + township bloggers + Scandinavian buyers and voila! You suddenly have millions of Rands flowing into this country and going directly to the mini-entrepreneurs.
Before you know it there'll be no need to ask people for donations. Though even if you did, you wouldn't have to hop 3 bank accounts to get the money into the country.
See Also: It's Tips for Trevor Time Again
11 comments:
I agree that pressure on PayPal might be helpful but I would sooner point the finger at the banking institutions in SA. Ask them why PayPal won't allow integration and I almost guarantee it will have something to do with the monopolistic attitude of those banks. Where there is decent competition (e.g, New Zealand, UK, Australia, USA etc) you can see why is PayPal is ok for payments in those countries.
Good luck!
Oh, if Paypal would only support South Africa to receive payments, that would be Awesome! I know of quite a few people who would use it straight away, including myself.
Yeah, I think Trevor is the only one who may have any weight behind this... we pay ridiculously high bank charges compared to the rest of the world... and they probably expect to charge PayPal a fortune to pay out the accounts too... which implies that it is probably not a viable business decision for PayPal to support it in SA. I reckon SA banks would say no problem to PayPal... for a fat fee... and that's the problem. It's a guess... but I can't see any other reason why it can't be done.
I needed to receive money through Paypal and when I phoned around frantically I got all kinds of answers ranging from - terrorists can move their money around too easily to there is too much fraud in South Africa and Pay Pal doesn't want to do it; but I guess it is either a Trade & Industry thing or else Minister Trevor's bizniz.
How is South Africa ever going to become a global player is small businesses can't operate internationally?
This is one of the most frustrating things about doing anything regarding ecommerce in Africa. If SA is blackballed at PayPal (as it is), then what hope do the rest of the African nations have of getting something working for them?
On the other hand, someone could look at this as an entrepreneur might, and see billions of dollars worth of opportunity. He who solves the eCommerce "last mile" issue in Africa will be rich.`
Hats off to Tertia for being such a great person and helping others less fortunate! :)
Regarding Paypal: Apparently SARS is the problem, because they want to tax everyone on online earnings, but they currently have no means of tracking money coming into the country through Paypal, which means that they just disallow it!
BUT, being a freelancer and working for a lot of overseas clients, I've found a way of getting my Paypal money into SA.
1) Sign up for a Paypal account with a different nationality and a different address.
2) Add any VISA credit card.
3) Extract the money and enjoy!
hi ther, i'm not cybersavvy at all. I have set up a paypal account and linked it to my mastercard. How do i transfer funds into my paypal account?
"The people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world... are the ones who do." - Apple Computers
If I was 'Candy Incorporated' and wealthy enough to buy the rights from Apple to use this quote... it would be my pay-off line. It seems it may suit those like you too.
I think you're onto something that may eventually develop into reality.
Thanks for this - enjoyed reading.
Candy
just another sidelined South African forced onto the web-bucks periphery because of my location
Thanks for the comment Candy, I've had some help recently from some wonderful high-profile folks, and will post more soon!
You could try www.setcom.co.za - its the same concept with no monthly fees but the transaction fees are a bit steep.
I agree, banking in South Africa is rediculous. I am also waiting on PayPal to include South Africa so that I can go online with business. Come on PayPal!!! You can do it, You can do It!! Everyone together! You can do it, You can do it!!!!!!!
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