Is it MA → Chase → you, or is it MA → MA bank → Chase-> you?
UPDATE:
I have been given a transcript of the wire transfer from MindArk’s end. I will be taking that to Chase bank on Monday to find out where the disconnect is and update here when I find out.
I bet it’s from chase bank’s side..those end of the year CEO bonuses needs to be paid :rolleyes:
No shit LMAO .. Its easy to blame on MA
Why couldn’t you wait until Monday before opening 2 threads with slander?
There are two reasons I didn’t wait until Monday before opening a thread about this.
First, I wanted to solicit information from the community in case anybody else has experienced this. This approach was previously recommended to me by the Support department for other issues. To this goal this thread has been very productive and I have received some valuable insights.
Second, prior to making this thread I had already contacted my bank and retrieved all the information I was able to with the information I had at the time, and was therefor at a dead end. It was not until after the creation of this thread that I received amplifying information which I will use to follow up with my bank for additional information.
A note on slander; That was never the purpose of either thread. The purpose of this thread is to solicit information from the community. The purpose of the other thread is to express frustration regarding the changes in banks that was made by MindArk, and refer back to this thread as one additional example of the hassle caused by the change.
In my early entropia days around 2007 I had a similar issue with a 70$ fee on withdrawal which neither MA nor my bank said they took it. I’ve escalated the issue with my bank and found out that my bank was working with another bank to process international transfers so the withdrawal process was MA->MA Bank->Unknown bank-> My bank and the unknown bank took the 70$ processing fees. The Unknown bank used by my bank to process the transfer had nothing to do with MA but my bank didn’t acknowledge this until I’ve escalated the issue, they kept saying that this how much we received we didn’t took the 70$ go ask the sender.
1 Like
That is the kind of thing I am starting to hear about, and precisely the reason I opened this thread when I did. Having heard so many people with this story, I am guessing my story will turn out very similarly.
you did well to highlight this problem, it will allow us to better understand it and perhaps to find a solution.
I can confirm this issue. Noticed 25$ additional fee in this year but dont have any problem with it, hope my lovely MA took it, not bank!
I’m not saying it was a bank, but it was a bank.
1 Like
Update:
I called Chase Bank and spoke to their Wires team (if you bank with Chase please note their business hours are different than the Checking team and it is an internal number so you have to start by calling checking or other customer service numbers). There were no 3rd party banks the money was going through, it was going directly between MindArk’s bank and Chase bank. There is, however, an administrative issue going on here.
MindArk’s bank has an account with Chase bank and they have an internal agreement which basically permits them to do debits from their Chase account rather than actually wiring the funds every time.
The problem? Chase Bank charges a fee to MA’s bank for this debit. This fee does not show up documented in any way on my end, and the only way I found out about it was by calling their wires department.
The solution? MA’s bank needs to put “OUR” under Field 71A in order for the fee not to be charged to the recipient. I have contactd Support and requested that they inform their bank to update that field, and will update here with my results.
Received a reply from MA on my support case.
Hi,
When we send a withdrawal we always pay OUR banks fee but never the possible fee for the recipient.
This has been the case since we started. It is also described when you are making a withdrawal from your PED card in the FAQ on our website.
Your bank charge you this fee, which is not unusual - as it is a payment from abroad and they have administration because of this.
Kind regards,
William, Entropia Universe Support - Economy
So it seems I’m shit out of luck here. I’ll start exploring other banking options and see if there’s one that doesn’t charge MA’s bank additional fees that are hidden from my end. Suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Don’t know if it helps as I don’t live in US but my hidden fee issues went away when I changed my withdrawal bank account from one in USD to one in EUR.
Wow!
As an EU citizen I’m very surprised by all this. Over here bank transfers between private accounts are not charged and on my business bank account I pay EUR 0.15 for each transfer out, EUR 0.05 for each transfer in. For international transfers in other currencies (in $ to my Chinese suppliers) I use currencyfair. It’s an Irish trust with a bank account with the Bank of America. here I only pay $ 4 for a transfer to a bank in China.
$10, $15 or $25 seems insanely high…
Maybe MA should look into a cheaper way to handle finances. That could save a lot of time, money and frustration
found a new bank that only will cost 5 usd for incoming wires… beats the hell out of 40… now just got to talk my spouse in to moving over to the other bank.
still costly to go the other way but maybe Mindark will find some new solutions to that?
1 Like
Update: I got a tip from another player about the bank they are using to withdraw. I opened an account with that bank and tried to follow their instructions for receiving international wire transfers. Their instructions require a “further credit” line for account number and name of account holder, and Support has thus far not been helpful in resolving the issue.
I recall reading a thread in which Forgo seemed to have a similar issue, but I have not yet been able to confirm it’s the same issue or the resolution thereof.
Attached screenshots of support case with personal information removed.
http://www.planetcalypsoforum.com/gallery/files/4/0/9/1/9/bank_update_snafu.jpg
http://www.planetcalypsoforum.com/gallery/files/4/0/9/1/9/bank_snafu_2_111829.jpg
One question I have, if MindArk’s bank is charging a fee, why is MindArk also charging a fee? I thought the MindArk fee was to cover the bank fee? :scratch2:
Technically MindArk’s bank isn’t charging a fee, but rather forwarding a fee that they are being charged because they aren’t actually wiring money - they are doing something else.