The Lady Programmer

I had been able to get my second Payoneer card several months ago (I think last May or June) and I got that activated just before my first Payoneer card expired last August 2009. I got my Payoneer card free through oDesk.

The new card’s physical appearance is no different from the old one. It’s still the sleek shiny and black that looks better than most local debit and credit cards I’ve seen here in the Philippines. Once more, I get to use the card for three years before I get to contact Payoneer again for a replacement card.

I went through the instructions of reactivating the card several days after I received it through snail mail. I contacted Payoneer’s live support to activate that new card and disable to old one. I remember chatting to the support for about 15 minutes just to perform this one. My virtual bank account too, was transferred from my old card to the new one.

Ideally, this card should work with any ATM machines and credit card terminals that bear the Mastercard logo.

I was excited in using this card, only to notice later that they won’t work with Banco de Oro ATM machines anymore. I always get an error message from any of their ATM machines. I’m not sure if they don’t work with BDO Mastercard credit card terminals but I sometimes notice that my card is declined, even if my card has funds loaded in it.

I have no problems withdrawing funds from Metrobank and BPI ATM machines. But I would still love to have my Payoneer card work well with BDO ATMs because these are more accessible to me. Metrobank and BPI ATMs aren’t safe places to withdraw funds here in Baguio.

I keep on wondering if I am not the only Payoneer card holder experiencing problems with BDO ATMs. Right now, the only solution I can think of is to contact both Payoneer and BDO for this concern.

If you had encountered the same problem, suggest on what’s the best way to deal with this or even provide possible explanation why my card doesn’t work with a specific bank ATM, let me know through the comments.

LAST UPDATED: October 24, 2009

oDesk-issued Payoneer cards are still shipped out free. The activation fee comes in when the card is first loaded. Please visit Payoneer to see their latest card charges and fees.

I learned about oDesk around October 2007. I had signed up with this freelance site but I had not decided to bid on jobs right away. I was too busy working at a full time job which required me to spend lots of overtime work. However, I decided to apply for an oDesk Mastercard after I had signed up. After more than a month, the oDesk Mastercard came in through snail mail – FREE!

For a while I was impressed at the sleek black look of this card. I think this card beats the appearance and quality of most ATM/debit cards that issued locally in the Philippines.

The oDesk Mastercard comes with some documents contained instructions and fees that helped me activate the card online. I’ve learned that the oDesk Mastercard is simply one of the payout methods that oDesk uses to pay its freelancers. This card is powered by Payoneer, which also offers payouts solutions to some sites like Elance, ReviewMe, iStockPhoto, MetaCafe and other online sites that opt to remit payments through this payment method. Some of sites offer Payoneer card to only paid members, such as those providers working for Elance; while others give out the card for without requiring paid membership upgrade – just like what I had experienced in oDesk.

Think of Payoneer simply as another payment method available to receive online earnings – an alternative to Paypal payouts, if an online site offers this alternative payment method.

You can learn more about Payoneer through their FAQ page. It provides answers to those questions on how to activate the card, how to get funds loaded, how to manage the account and how to use the card.

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