CoinJar Abandons Bank Transfers for Bill-Payments Service BPAY

Australia-based bitcoin wallet and exchange service CoinJar is gearing up to switch to electronic bill payment system BPAY as the sole means of topping up its 'Filler' balances with fiat currency.

In a recent blog post, the company outlined some issues with traditional payment methods and pointed out that bank transfer-related issues account for over 25% of help requests from its customers. Therefore the company started exploring alternative payments options and decided BPAY was the best solution.

As a result, CoinJar will be switching to BPAY for all Filler deposits from Saturday, 10th May, it said, explaining:

“Using your BPAY Customer Reference Number and our Biller Code, you’ll be able to recharge your Filler in a few simple clicks from any mobile or Internet banking app. If your banking provider supports it, you’ll even be able to schedule regular deposits to recharge your Filler.”

Minimal disruption

The switch is scheduled for 4.00pm Melbourne time (BST +9) and a brief maintenance window is scheduled for the same morning. Service disruptions should be minimal, CoinJar said, however users need to prepare for the transition.

In order to make BPAY deposits, users do need to have verified their identity. That being the case, the whole process will be fast-tracked by the company's support team.

Any user who do not wish to reveal or verify their identity will still be able to use CoinJar to send and receive bitcoins.

The company further points out that, from Saturday, it will be a BPAY-exclusive system, and users will no longer be able to make over-the-counter cash deposits or transfer funds to CoinJar's previous National Australia Bank (NAB) accounts.

In early April, the NAB announced it will no longer work with bitcoin-related companies due to "an unacceptable level of risk".

The system for withdrawing funds remains unchanged, CoinJar said.

Using unique BPAY IDs

Once the switch takes place, each CoinJar user will be assigned a unique BPAY reference ID that will be created when the user attempts to create a new Filler deposit after the switchover.

Once they receive the new ID, users will be able to use it to through online banking services simply by choosing the ‘Pay with BPAY’ option.

The company gives the following simple step-by-step guide to the process:

“Enter CoinJar's BPAY Biller Code and your CoinJar Account's Reference ID, along with the amount you wish to transfer to Filler. Click 'Send' and you're all done! Your deposit will reach CoinJar within 1-3 business days and, provided all the details have been entered correctly, will automatically be added to your Filler balance.”

The company encourages users to get acquainted with BPAY ahead of time and get in touch with CoinJar customer support in case they require any additional information.

Payment image via Shutterstock