Electronic money. Electronic payment systems. Electronic money types, characteristics and payment systems

You will learn the names of electronic money, which are most popular in Russia, how and where you can buy such means of payment, and what are the features of cashing them out.

Good afternoon, dear readers! With you is Denis Kuderin, editor-in-chief and part-time expert of HeatherBober magazine on financial topics.

I work remotely and receive my salary via the Internet, namely through online banking and through electronic payment systems (EPS). I have accounts in at least 5 of these services, and I use them more or less regularly. Electronic money is convenient, fast and reliable, provided that you use it wisely.

I will tell you what the pros and cons of electronic money are, how to manage them correctly, which wallets are preferable for domestic and which for international payments.

You will learn how profitable it is to cash out digital money, where the lowest commission is, and why you cannot put an equal sign between WMR and rubles.

1. What is electronic money and how did it appear?

It is useful to know about electronic money for everyone who intends to use or already uses money payments on the Internet. If you want to pay for the services of a provider, throw money at your phone, buy a bike in an online store, get paid for the work done by a designer, author, translator, payment systems will become your reliable assistant.

EPS has only one alternative - Internet banking. But not all service providers, customers and employers support financial settlements through a bank. For some it is expensive, for others it is unprofitable, and for others it is inconvenient. EDs provide additional freedom of action in this regard.

What is electronic money (ED) from a legal point of view? This is a kind of obligation assumed by the issuing organization. They represent the equivalent of real money stored on an online resource. This is part of the virtual financial market.

What is the level of reliability of cashless systems in comparison with banks? It will be difficult for a non-specialist to compare the degree of vulnerability of a personal Internet account in a bank and an account in an EPS.

The developers assure that your funds will be kept equally secure both in the bank and in virtual wallets. But a bank is still a bank, that is, a place, by definition, intended for storing money. And EPS is primarily a service for virtual payments and only then storage.

Hence the conclusion: storing large sums on electronic wallets is not the wisest step. Keep funds here for operating expenses and everyday payments. It's better to keep the rest in a bank account.

Historical information:

The need for remote electronic payments appeared almost immediately after the widespread spread of the Internet. The first full-fledged EPS appeared in 1997. In Russia it was a platform called CyberPlat, which allowed instant payments through secure channels.

The first online payment in the Russian Federation was carried out in 1998. In the same year, the WebMoney platform, which is still successfully operating today, went into operation. The date of the first transaction was November 1998. Now WebMoney Transfer has more than 36 million users around the world.

The legal regulation of the status of ED is regulated by the Federal Law on PS of 2016.

ED is the equivalent of real monetary units. They perform the same function as regular money and are legally taxed. Some services even issue plastic cards that have the same capabilities as traditional bank plastic.

Personally, I have a YandexMoney plastic card, which I use to successfully pay in supermarkets, coffee shops, cinemas and wherever there are acquiring machines.

The only disadvantage of this card is the 3% commission for cash withdrawals. But some banking products also require interest on withdrawals, so this is a relative minus.

Let's list the main advantages of ED:

1. Convenience– most payments and transfers are made in one click.
2. Reliability– if necessary, you set up confirmation of transactions via SMS: no one except you will know the code for the operation.
3. Durability– money is stored in your wallet as long as you need it.
4. Liquidity– transfer virtual funds into real ones at any time.
5. Anonymity– if desired, the recipient and sender remain unknown.
6. Safety– all EPS use modern algorithms for protecting funds and transactions.
7. 24/7 service– services are automatic and work seven days a week.
8. Versatility– almost all banks, online stores and service sites accept electronic payments.
9. Anti-counterfeit protection– they will not transfer you a counterfeit bill electronically.
10. Portability and comfort when using.

Among the disadvantages of virtual coins are the presence of a commission for some operations, the risk of account hacking by attackers, and loss of access to the wallet if the authorization data is lost.

The last drawback can be easily eliminated if you go through full identification. For example, in YaD, for this you need to come to the organization’s office (or to the Euroset salon) with a passport and pay 50 rubles. After this, it will be easier to restore access if you lose your password and code word.

To use EPS, a person only needs access to the network, an ATM or a card issued by a payment system. But I have to warn you that not all countries accept electronic payments. When traveling abroad, it is wiser to use the international EPS Visa and MasterCard.

2. Ways to use electronic currency

The main scope of ED application is settlements between users (individuals, companies, public organizations).

Payments are made instantly thanks to modern digital technologies. This distinguishes EPS from transactions with bank accounts, which are often delayed for several hours or even days.

Let's consider all the ways to use virtual money.

Method 1. Internet payments

This is the main use case – payments on the Internet for goods, services, work performed. Money from an electronic account is sent to other wallets, bank cards, accounts of organizations and individuals.

Payments are available around the clock. Pay, when it is convenient for you, for purchases, housing and communal services, Internet providers, cellular operators, government services, traffic police fines, etc. All transactions are tracked and saved in the transaction history.

If required, you will receive a check by mail with details and payment date. Print it out and use it as proof of payment.

Method 2. ATMs

Terminals and ATMs are another popular tool for using digital money.

Using hardware, they top up accounts, pay for purchases, and receive cash.

Method 3. Credit cards

Some systems allow you to pay with credit funds when paying for purchases in stores, supermarkets, hotels and other places.

In addition, you have the right to pay off expenses from credit cards using electronic money.

Method 4. Bank checks

You transfer ED to a bank account, then withdraw funds from a bank or ATM.

Another option is to send electronic money using international EPS, the recipient receives the transfer at the bank. The method is not the fastest, but sometimes it is the only possible one.

3. What types of money are there on the Internet?

I have used all three EPS presented below and can reliably indicate the advantages and disadvantages of each service.

I would like to warn you in advance that these electronic documents are beneficial to use only for internal payments in the Russian Federation and neighboring countries. Make transactions with Europe, the USA and other countries through other services.

1) WebMoney

The oldest PS in Runet. It is noteworthy that it is used not only in the Russian Federation and neighboring countries, but also in some Western European countries.

WebMoney has several types of currencies:

• WMR – account in rubles;
• WMU – in hryvnias;
• WMZ – in dollars;
• WMB – in Belarusian rubles;
• WMX – in bitcoins.

There are even accounts in litecoins and gold. WebMoney bills are paid through the Keeper website or client, as well as through banks, exchange offices and other payment services.

The disadvantages are the same as those of other EPS: commissions, difficulties with transferring to cash. So, in Kazakhstan, in order to cash out WMR, you need to pay a commission to exchange offices from 10 to 30%.

Among the shortcomings that affected me personally is the complex and lengthy identification process. There are many steps and procedures required to obtain a personal certificate. Not everyone has the desire or time for such manipulations.

Another point is the difficulty of transferring Keeper (the client for working in the system) to another computer and recovering the password if it is lost.

Many also remember the situation with vague sanctions by companies several years ago - withdrawal of money from any WM accounts was unavailable for a long time. It was necessary to use complex withdrawal schemes from the account, with a loss of 5 to 10% of funds.

2) Yandex.Money

In the Russian Federation, this is perhaps the most popular platform for online transactions.

Three types of wallets are available to users:

• anonymous;
• nominal;
• identified.

They differ in the amounts that are allowed to be stored in the account, limits on payments and cash withdrawals.

When cashing out funds or transferring to a bank card, you will be charged a 3% commission.

3) Qiwi

A convenient and modern payment system with many terminals throughout Russia and wide possibilities. Your Qiwi account is linked to your phone number: to log in, you only need your number and password.

The service is convenient for those who are not particularly comfortable with the Internet, but use a telephone and terminals.

In addition to the above, I would like to draw your attention to the PayPal system - if you pay for purchases in foreign online stores or auction sites (for example, on AliExpress or EBay), then this service is ideal.

Service comparison table:

4. How and where you can buy electronic money

The easiest way to buy electronic money is where it is most often used, namely on the Internet. To purchase virtual money, you need to register on the website of the system of your choice and create a virtual wallet.

There are several replenishment options:

1. From a bank card.
2. In cash - through banks, salons of partner companies (for YandexMoney and Qiwi these are: Euroset, Svyaznoy, Megafon).
3. From a mobile phone account.
4. Through ATMs.
5. From wallets of other payment systems.
6. Through translation services – Unistream, Contact.
7. Through Russian Post and Rostelecom.

Find out how to purchase ED on the websites of payment companies and from telephone consultants.

Personally, I rarely use such an option as “Replenishment” for the reason that for me the inverse function – “Withdrawal” – is more relevant. But my friends assure that the most popular replenishment option is payment terminals. Transferring from a card is faster, but for this the system charges a commission of around 0.8-1%.

5. Features of cashing out

The main feature in this matter is obvious: 100 virtual rubles are not 100 real ones. That is, WMR is not the equivalent of RUR. This is a couple or three percent less. Different systems charge different commissions, and much depends on the method of cashing out.

Not all types of wallets and certificates provide cash withdrawal. For example, in WebMoney, cash withdrawal is available only to authenticated users. And the process itself is not available in all cities of the Russian Federation, but only in those where there is a WebMoney office.

It is much easier to withdraw money to a bank card and then cash it out at an ATM. Or get an EPS card and also cash it out at an ATM. It's quick and easy, but you will lose a certain amount - that's what payment companies make money on.

I rarely withdraw cash from my YandexMoney card, but as an experiment I did it at the nearest Sberbank ATM. I lost 3% from 1000 rubles, but now I can say with confidence that the withdrawal works.

It is much more expedient to use this card to pay for goods directly, by bank transfer. In this case, no interest is charged - neither in supermarkets nor in online stores.

As for the lowest commission for cashing out, users' opinions are divided. Some believe that WebMoney is more profitable, others believe that, taking into account all the extra charges, this system removes more than Poison.

I have practiced both output schemes. At the time of writing, the Yandex service is more convenient and slightly cheaper in this regard.

Watch a video on comparing virtual wallets:

6. Conclusion

Electronic money exists relatively recently. But they have already received recognition from Internet users. However, for many, the essence of electronic payments remains not fully understood. What is electronic money in Russia?

General points

Japan first began using electronic money in the 1980s. It began with the introduction of prepaid chip cards from individual companies, which over time began to be used and used by other economic entities.

For Europe, the first use of prepaid electronic payment products began in the 1990s. Individuals could save their funds on special cards (Mondex, Proton, Danmont and Primeur Card).

Interest in such payment methods was attracted by innovative technologies, as well as the lack of affiliation with the banking industry. After some time, similar projects began to be implemented by banks.

A little later, new payment technologies came to Russia. And if at first they were perceived with some doubt, then by 2013 the turnover of the electronic payment market in the Russian Federation reached almost two and a half trillion rubles.

Several factors contributed to the development of the use of electronic money. In particular, the active spread of online commerce, the low price of Internet transactions, the possibility of instant execution of transactions without personal identification.

The scale of the spread of electronic means of payment and their considerable importance in settlements between legal and private entities have led to the need to resolve the main issues of application.

The state was required to:

Basic definitions

Electronic money, in essence, is money in the usual sense of the word. They can be used to pay for purchases in online stores, pay for various services, and transfer to bank accounts and cards.

But they have the advantage of mobility. There is no reference to time and place. You can make a payment from anywhere in the world and at any time of the day. The main condition is access to the Internet.

The main formulations are that electronic money is:

The term “electronic money” is far from ambiguous. It is used in a variety of understandings. This definition refers to systems for storing and transferring both official and private currencies.

Consequently, the rules for the circulation of electronic money are regulated both by the provisions of Central Banks and by the personal regulations of payment systems.

In a more simplified sense, electronic money payments can be thought of as a transfer of regular cash from one bank account to another. At the same time, the procedure is quite simple and does not require unnecessary formalities.

Their qualifications

Most often, electronic cash is classified as follows:

In Russia, the following electronic payment products are considered the most popular::

• Yandex Money;
• WebMoney;
• Single wallet;
• RBC Money;
• PayCash;
• Rapida.

Most of Russian electronic payment systems are not represented by financial organizations. Their activities are not considered financial.

This allows payment systems to reduce costs arising from banking activities. But at the same time, this prevents the conduct of legally complete financial relations between participants in the system.

It is this state of affairs that requires clear legislative regulation of the concept of electronic money and the rules for its use.

Current standards

Initially, the legality of the circulation of electronic money was questioned, since it does not recognize electronic money as cash. Therefore, payment systems have found a way to solve this problem.

In particular, electronic cash has received a different name. For example, WebMoney title units or PayCash advance payments.

Thus, electronic money becomes not cash, but prepaid cash title units or securities.

At the same time, electronic money has become a way to take into account the rights of claims of users of electronic payment systems to representatives of these systems.

Electronic payments are essentially the exchange of messages that confirm the transfer of title units and property rights.

As for the legal aspect, the payment system is a guarantor that guarantees to third parties the payment of an amount equivalent to a unit of the system through a bank.

From a legal point of view, electronic money is an analogue of checks, securities, and gift certificates. That is, payment systems issue securities using uncertificated bearer checks.

Also worthy of attention. It presupposes the possibility of carrying out legal circulation of securities not provided for by law. This means that the circulation of electronic money does not violate Russian legislation.

At this time, the electronic money market in Russia is regulated by the Central Bank of the Russian Federation. The main governing law is.

Some changes came into force on May 16, 2014. He made adjustments to Federal Law No. 161.

In accordance with the new amendments, mandatory user identification has been introduced for individuals, non-profit organizations and organizations created outside the Russian Federation. At the same time, a simplified identification procedure became possible.

Features of electronic money

The main feature of electronic money is its virtuality. Such means of payment cannot be seen, touched or put in your pocket.

But this does not diminish their value. Of course, you can’t pay with that kind of money in regular stores. However, you can make purchases via the Internet, pay for various payments and services, and transfer funds to other persons.

As for other features, electronic money can be personalized and anonymous. This depends on the rules for the circulation of electronic cash in the system.

At the same time, all sorts of attempts are being made to personalize most electronic means. To achieve this, limits are introduced for anonymous users and the size of the anonymous wallet is limited.

Security cryptographic methods can also be called an important feature of electronic payment instruments. They allow you to achieve a certain security when using electronic cash.

That is, electronic money is reliably protected by an electronic digital signature. This eliminates the possibility of counterfeiting electronic money.

Who are they using?

Basically in Russia, electronic money is used to pay for cellular communications, Internet access, utilities, and Internet purchases.

Often, electronic payments are used to transfer funds to other users of the system. Teenagers often spend money on online games. The older population pays for goods and services, taxes and fines in this way.

In terms of the number of users who have used electronic payments at least once, Russian statistics for a large city are as follows?

At the same time, 14% of the younger generation spends money earned on the Internet. 48% of the older generation are novice users.

Electronic money is increasingly used when conducting online business. At the same time, electronic money is considered as a form of modern market economy.

Electronic payments allow instant settlements between entrepreneurs and clients. This eliminates many of the costs inherent in doing business offline.

Forms of their use

According to the forms of use of electronic means, several main methods can be distinguished.

These include:

What is their advantage

The most significant advantages of electronic money include:

• the ability to pay anywhere and at any time;
• almost instant transfer of funds;
• convenience and ease of use.

Less obvious advantages include the possibility of reducing queues at cash registers and reducing the burden on accounting. In addition, electronic money is protected from counterfeiting.

They are portable, that is, they will not take up much space in any quantity. They divide perfectly, eliminating the need to wait for change.

Electronic money can be stored as long as you like, without this its appearance becoming unusable. With electronic payments, the human factor is completely eliminated, meaning all payments will reach their intended destination.

Disadvantages of such payments

Among the disadvantages, the following are especially significant:

• the need to pay interest to the system when withdrawing money;
• possibility of wallet hacking;
• loss of money if you lose your password.

With a more detailed analysis of the shortcomings, they are practically reduced to zero. When withdrawing funds, you need to pay a certain percentage for withdrawal. But banks also charge fees for services and transactions.

Therefore, this disadvantage is rather the usual cost of contacting third parties to carry out financial transactions. The e-wallet can be hacked. In this case, a third party will log into the system and spend or transfer the stored funds.

And most often the user himself is to blame for this. You can only log in using a username and password that are created by the owner of the wallet. The possibility of theft of confidential data depends on how carefully he stores his data.

Another drawback is that if you lose your password, you will not be able to log in to the system. This means that no transactions with electronic means will be possible. The basic advice is still the same - keep your password in a safe place.

But you shouldn’t neglect the password recovery method. To do this, when registering in the payment system, you need to identify your identity in as much detail as possible.

Ideally, provide scans of documents, link your email and phone number. After this, even losing your password is not a problem. Using your identification data, you can obtain the right to renew access and change your password.

In general, electronic money is a very flexible tool that allows you to expand the scope of use of cash and significantly simplify cash flow.

In Russia, the use of electronic payment systems is not yet well developed. But given the pace of development, it can be assumed that in the future electronic money will be given a fairly significant priority.

Neighboring countries of the Russian Federation also use various electronic payment systems. Belarus is no exception. An electronic payment system called Easypay has been operating on the territory of this state for quite a long time. It has its own characteristics, connected to the ERIP system, as well as acquiring...

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The development of e-commerce and Internet earnings has led to the rapid development of electronic payment systems (EPS), which offer every user of the World Wide Web to use electronic money for various purposes.

At the moment, there are already several dozen payment systems in Russia alone, and even more in the world. Of course, not all of them are heard. Of course, it will not be possible to cover all the EPS, but we will consider the most popular ones.

Payment systems of Russia

In Russia, there are several leading payment systems. In each individual case, you need to choose exactly according to your needs.
For example, Qiwi is truly a “people's” system and everyone who knows what payment terminals are works with it.
At the same time, WebMoney is used by almost everyone who makes money in the Russian-speaking part of the RuNet.
Both Yandex Money and other electronic wallets have their own audience.

You can withdraw electronic money from Qiwi in different ways (through instant payment systems, to bank details or to payment cards), but in most of them you will be charged a certain percentage (commission).
But there is still a way to withdraw funds interest-free and quite convenient - order a QIWI Visa Plastic card from them, with which you can pay for purchases both on the Internet and in regular stores, and no commission will be charged for this.

These electronic money do not have such popularity outside the Internet (like Qiwi). Not so many users pay for communal services, but the bulk of the money earned in RuNet is received and withdrawn from this Internet payment system.

This system is attractive because you can link a plastic card to your wallet, so that you can then use it to pay in stores and in all other places where MasterCard is accepted. In this case, the account on the electronic wallet is equal to the balance on the card and no interest is charged for such use (a commission is charged only when withdrawing money from an ATM).
A very convenient way to withdraw your earnings on the Internet.

The main purpose of electronic money from mail.ru is to make online payments, for which the tariffs have been optimized - you will not be charged interest for entering and paying for goods in online stores. But for internal transfers, and even more so for withdrawals, a commission is provided (withdrawing money in real life through Mail.ru is generally not very profitable, compared to other payment systems).

In general, they are ideal for those who use them to pay for games on Mail.ru or any other services, and also receive transfers within the system.

More recently, Money Mail.ru was swallowed up by the insatiable QIWI.

International payment systems

PayPal is fiat electronic money, unlike many other payment systems. The purpose of creating this system was to ensure the security of payments from a card linked to an account. In this case, you do not need to fill out your card details, and also receive some guarantee from the system regarding the delivery of goods paid for via Paypal.

If the product was not delivered or it turned out to be of poor quality, then there is a very real possibility of returning the money by opening a dispute (within a month and a half after payment). Read more about how on our website.

This system also has its drawbacks, of course. In my opinion, there are very high interest rates for replenishing a wallet (compared to the usual RuNet payment giants), but in many cases it is still more profitable than using some other payment systems or schemes for withdrawing money from the Internet.
Read how to start one on our website.

Verification in the system is not required and you can completely receive, deposit and withdraw money from Perfect Money anonymously. But... If the system suspects that you are committing fraudulent actions, your wallet may be blocked.

Read more about it on our website.

OKPay, like Payeer or Perfect Money, allows operations to withdraw money from “pyramid schemes” or gambling. True, the limit on payments passing through an unverified account (without confirming your identity) is limited. Just like in Perfect Money, here you are paid as much as 3% for finding money in your account, which is a little unusual for electronic wallets.

The main application of Payza in Russia and RuNet may be to receive Internet money earned abroad, withdraw it or transfer it to another user of this system.

Read how to start one on our website.

The development of money circulation led to the emergence of electronic money. These are finances stored in computer memory on technical devices, which can only be managed using special software. Compared to paper counterparts, electronic money has certain advantages:

• the speed of processing payment documentation has been reduced;
• It has become easier to work with bank correspondence;
• the cost of transfers is lower than with regular non-cash transactions.

Essentially, this is an electronic form of monetary obligations of a financial institution. Can be repaid in cash if required.

Money to an electronic wallet

An electronic wallet is nothing more than several regular bank accounts for storing and carrying out money circulation. Only users of the same system transfer money to each other’s e-wallet with a minimum commission. In order to transfer money to another system, you must use special additional payment services. You can withdraw funds from an electronic wallet to a bank account connected to the Internet banking system of the issuing bank. This makes it possible to withdraw cash and receive paper banknotes through a teller or ATM in your banking system.

Electronic money systems

There are several electronic money systems. The most popular in Russia are:

• Webmoney Transfer;
• Yandex.Money;
• QIWI;
• LiqPay;
• EasyPay.

The following payment systems are widely used in international money circulation:

• Liberty Reserve;
• ayza(AlertPay);
• PayPal;
• Moneybookers;
• Moneybookers.

Each system has its own characteristics and rules for performing transactions with electronic accounts. The ratio of electronic money to the existing banking rate in the state also differs. Electronic money systems are perpetual banking obligations of the issuer of electronic currency.

Electronic money exchangers

To transfer electronic funds between accounts of different payment systems, including withdrawal to bank card accounts with the possibility of subsequent receipt of cash, there are electronic money exchangers. They differ in exchange methods - automatic, semi-automatic or manual. Each exchanger also sets its own rate for each currency and the percentage for exchange transactions between currency pairs. Each such service is limited by a certain limit - the electronic money reserve. Exchanges greater than this amount are not possible.

Electronic money transfer

Electronic money transfer is today's fastest form of performing settlement transactions from your account in the EPS (electronic payment system) to the recipient's account. The operation is completed almost instantly. You are only required to have a sufficient amount in the payment currency in your EPS account and indicate the exact details of the recipient of the electronic funds. A money transfer can be initiated from any electronic device with the appropriate software installed on it (personal computer or wearable gadget, payment terminal).

Term electronic money(and also electronic cash, or digital cash) refers to transactions of funds carried out through electronic communications. Electronic money can be a debit or a credit. Digital cash can be a form of currency, and to start using it, you need to convert some amount of regular money into digital money. This conversion is similar to purchasing foreign currency.

Electronic money:

• are not money, but are either checks, or gift certificates, or other similar means of payment (depending on the legal model of the system and the restrictions of the law).
• can be issued by banks, non-profit organizations, or other organizations.

The fundamental difference between electronic money and ordinary non-cash funds: electronic money is a means of payment issued by some organization (money surrogate), while ordinary money (cash or non-cash) is issued by the central state bank of a particular country.

The term electronic money is often used inaccurately to refer to a wide range of payment instruments based on innovative technical solutions in the field of retail payments.

Digital Cash

Digital cash is electronic money that will be issued by the states themselves.

Market of electronic money systems in Russia

2012: Yandex.Money rules the market

2011: Law 161-FZ "On the national payment system"

On September 29, 2011, Federal Law No. 161-FZ “On the National Payment System” of June 27, 2011 became key for the industry, which established the definition of electronic money (EMF) and established key requirements for the transfer of EMF, as well as electronic money operators. If earlier activities were regulated by many laws and individual articles in various laws, then the law “On the National Payment System” has become a single regulatory document for the entire electronic payment industry.

2012

The identification system for users of electronic wallets can be tightened. This was stated in November 2012 by the head of the Bureau of Special Technical Events (BSTM) of the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs, Alexey Moshkov. According to Alexey Moshkov, the use of anonymous payment systems greatly facilitates the activities of fraudsters, since in some cases the personification of the holder of a virtual wallet is difficult or impossible.

“Criminals use anonymous payment systems to collect and cash out funds, distribute and confuse financial flows. In addition, such virtual wallets are used for the anonymous purchase of prohibited goods and internal payments between members of criminal groups.”

Legal and economic status of electronic money

From a legal point of view, electronic money is a perpetual monetary obligation of the issuer to bearer in electronic form, the release (issue) into circulation of which is carried out by the issuer both after receiving funds in an amount not less than the amount assumed by the obligations, and in the form of the loan provided. The circulation of electronic money is carried out by assigning the right of claim to the issuer and gives rise to the latter’s obligations to fulfill monetary obligations in the amount presented by electronic money. Accounting for monetary obligations is carried out electronically on a special device. In terms of their material form, electronic money represents information in electronic form that is at the disposal of the owner and stored on a special device, usually on the hard drive of a personal computer or a microprocessor card, and which can be transferred from one device to another using telecommunication lines and other electronic means of information transmission.

In an economic sense, electronic money is a payment instrument that, depending on the implementation scheme, has the properties of both traditional cash and traditional payment instruments (bank cards, checks, etc.): similar to cash is the ability to make payments without banking system, with traditional payment instruments - the ability to make cashless payments through accounts opened with credit institutions.

Types and classification of electronic money

There are 2 types of electronic money:

• Electronically issued payment certificates, or checks. These certificates have a specific denomination, are stored in encrypted form, and are signed with the electronic signature of the issuer. During settlements, certificates are transferred from one participant in the system to another, while the transfer itself may occur outside the framework of the issuer’s payment system.
• Entries on the current account of the system participant. Calculations are made by debiting a certain number of payment units from one account and depositing them into another account within the payment system of the electronic money issuer.

Electronic money schemes:

• which implement technology for transferring information electronically about monetary obligations issuer from the device of one holder to the device of another holder. These include Mondex (developed by Mondex International, owned 51% by MasterCard and 49% by the largest banks and financial institutions around the world) and the eCash network product from Digicash.

Among the world's well-known electronic money operators are:

Unlike ordinary non-cash money, electronic money