In October, David Sacks, VP at PayPal asked me how much of a lead I thought they had in the P2P payments market. Given that Checkfree was planning a Q2 2000 entry, I guessed PayPal had at least six months on the pack. I was wrong.

Since October, a half-dozen competitors have emerged: X.com (merged with PayPal), PayMe.com from idealabs (purchased by PayMyBills.com), dotbank (purchased by Yahoo!), and the latest, eMoneyMail from Bank One. Also, eCash Technologies, which purchased DigiCash’s intellectual property, announced that it is positioning Digicash as a free money transfer product aimed squarely at X.com. Banks will be encouraged to “ecash enable” their checking accounts.

eMoneyMail is significant because it’s backed by the fourth largest U.S. bank, Bank One (Chicago, IL; $264 billion). The others are startups that must fight security and trust issues. PayPal/X.com has moved beyond that problem, the others have not.

eMoneyMail differs from X.com/PayPal in two major ways:

•  eMoneyMail costs $1 per payment (paid by the sender); X.com/PayPal is free
•  eMoneyMail recipients can choose to have the money credited to their credit card; that option is not currently supported by X.com/PayPal

See the following chart to for a detailed comparison.

eMoneyMail vs. X.com/PayPal

 

How it Works

New users will often be introduced to a new email payment system when someone sends them money (see email #1 below). To make sure that initial payment ends up in the right hands, Bank One added a clever security enhancement not currently used by X.com/PayPal. Recipients must first respond correctly to a security question set by the sender before claiming the money. In the case below, the sender’s security question was, “What company do I work for?” See Step 1 right.

 

Email #1

Email to Recipient

Subject: Alan Martin has sent you an eMoneyMail

Date: Wed, 15 Mar 2000 16:15:13 -0500 (EST)

From: Alan Martin aj@netbranch.com

To: jim bruene jim@netbanker.com

Dear eMoneyMail Recipient:

Alan Martin has sent you money using eMoneyMail.

eMoneyMail, powered by Bank One, is the safe, easy way to send money over the Internet. You can now send money electronically to anyone in the United States by simply sending the person an e-mail message.

To receive your money, simply click the link below that takes you straight to the eMoneyMail web site. https://www.emoneymail.com/default.ASP?WCI=rc&REF=4502MKFpNlcoBtRZ

If you have used eMoneyMail before, just sign in and get your money. If you have never used eMoneyMail, you will need to create a profile first. You do not need to set up a new bank account to claim your money. You can put your money in an existing checking account, credit your Visa card, or have a printed check mailed to you.

If clicking the link to visit eMoneyMail doesn't work, simply copy and paste it into your browser's address window and press ENTER. For more detailed instructions, please consult the

FAQ's at https://www.emoneymail.com .

If you have any questions, please e-mail us at emoneymail@mailsupport.com

We hope you enjoy eMoneyMail. Please let us know what you think about eMoneyMail and be sure to tell your friends about us!

Thank you for using eMoneyMail. Have a great day!

Your eMoneyMail Team

Source: Bank One, 3/00

 

Receiving Money

Step 1: New users must correctly respond to a security question before claiming the money.

Step 2: Receiving money confirmation screen.

Step 3: Users select a method to receive payment.

Step 4: To deposit funds to a credit card, users enter the card info, including Card Verification Value on back.

Step 5: Users verify their deposit choice,
and can send a thank-you to the sender.

Step 6: Confirmation of transaction
and link to “refer a friend.”

Sending Money

Step 1: Enter recipient’s name, email address, and optional message in a familiar email interface.

Step 2: Select or compose a security question that the recipient must answer correctly within 3 guesses.

Step 3: Draw funds from checking or credit card. Card payments are immediate, checking takes 3 to 4 days.

Step 4: Confirm information and hit send.

Final transaction confirmation.

Email Flow

Another positive feature of email payments is the informative flow of emails keeping both sender and recipient informed. This corrects an underlying weakness of most bill payment products, lack of payment tracking capabilities. Following is a description of the emails generated during an eMoneyMail transaction.

Email Flow

	From	To	Description	Page
1	sender	recipient	announces payment	21
2	bank	sender	confirms payment sent	23
3	bank	recipient	confirms payment retrieval	23
4	bank	recipient	reminder to retrieve payment	24
5	bank	sender	payment not retrieved notice	24
6	bank	sender	notification that payment not claimed and has been reversed	24
7	sender	referral	optional referral	24

Email #2

Confirmation to Sender

Subject: Your eMoneyMail is on its way to Kate Schultz

Date: Wed, 15 Mar 2000 18:06:48 -0500 (EST)

From: eMoneyMail admin@emoneymail.com

To: Jim Bruene jim@netbanker.com

The eMoneyMail you sent to Kate Schultz is on its way.

Confirmation Number: 4530

Recipient's E-mail Address: kate@netbanker.com

Type of Payment: Credit/Debit Card

Amount: $1.00

Service Charge: $1.00

Amount charged to your account: $2.00

You can see further information about this money transaction by accessing the Transaction History function at https://www.emoneymail.com .

If you have any questions, please e-mail us at emoneymail@mailsupport.com

Please visit us again at https://www.emoneymail.com and be sure to tell your friends about us!

Thank you for using eMoneyMail. Have a great day!

Your eMoneyMail Team

 

Email #3

Confirmation to Recipient

Subject: Your money is on its way!

Date: Wed, 15 Mar 2000 17:51:47 -0500 (EST)

From: eMoneyMail admin@emoneymail.com

To: jim bruene jim@netbanker.com

The money sent to you by Alan Martin has been cleared and is on its way as you requested.

Confirmation Number: 4502

Type of Receipt: Credit/Debit Card

Amount: $1.00

You can see further information about this money transaction by accessing the Receive Money function at https://www.emoneymail.com .

If you have any questions, please e-mail us at emoneymail@mailsupport.com .

Please visit us again at https://www.emoneymail.com and be sure to tell your friends about us!

Thank you for using eMoneyMail. Have a great day!

Your eMoneyMail Team

 

Email #4

Reminder to Recipient

Subject: eMoneyMail Reminder

Date: Wed, 29 Mar 2000 03:00:07 -0500 (EST)

From: eMoneyMail admin@emoneymail.com

To: Kate Schultz kate@netbanker.com

Jim Bruene sent you money using eMoneyMail 14 days ago and you have not yet picked it up. In case that e-mail was lost, you may pick up the money by clicking below:

https://www.emoneymail.com/default.ASP?WCI=Signin&REF=4530MyUUKQlUfQRL

If you have used eMoneyMail before, just sign in and get your money. If you have never used eMoneyMail, you will need to create a profile first. You do not need to set up a new bank account to claim your money. You can put your money in an existing checking account, credit your Visa card, or have a printed check mailed to you.

If clicking the link to visit eMoneyMail doesn't work, simply copy and paste it into your browser’s address window and press ENTER. For more detailed instructions, please consult the FAQ's at https://www.emoneymail.com

If you have any questions, please e-mail us at emoneymail@mailsupport.com .

eMoneyMail, powered by Bank One, is the safe, easy way to send money over the Internet. You can now send money electronically to anyone in the United States by simply sending the person an e-mail message.

We hope you enjoy eMoneyMail. Please let us know what you think about eMoneyMail and be sure to tell your friends about us!

Thank you for using eMoneyMail. Have a great day!

Your eMoneyMail Team

 

Email #5

Notice to sender that payment has not been claimed

Subject: eMoneyMail reminder

Date: Wed, 29 Mar 2000 03:00:07 -0500 (EST)

From: eMoneyMail admin@emoneymail.com

To: jim@netbanker.com

Regarding Confirmation Number: 4530

Kate Schultz has not yet picked up the money you sent. You may want to contact that person to make sure they get their money.

You can see further information about this money transaction by accessing the Transaction History function at https://www.emoneymail.com .

If you have any questions, please e-mail us at emoneymail@mailsupport.com .

Thanks,

Your eMoneyMail Team

 

Email #6

Automatic transaction cancellation after 21 days

Subject: eMoneyMail Cancellation

Date: Wed, 5 Apr 2000 03:00:07 -0500 (EST)

From: eMoneyMail admin@emoneymail.com

To: : Jim Bruene jim@netbanker.com

Confirmation Number: 4530

Type of Payment: Credit/Debit Card

Amount: $1.00

Service Charge: $1.00

Kate Schultz did not pick up their money within the maximum time-frame of 21 days. Consequently, the transaction has been cancelled.

On 03/15/2000, $2.00 was charged to your account for your eMoneyMail. On 04/06/2000, $1.00 was returned to you without the $1.00 service charge.

You can see further information about this money transaction by accessing the Transaction History function at https://www.emoneymail.com .

If you believe this transaction is in error or if you have any questions, please e-mail us at emoneymail@mailsupport.com .

Thanks,

Your eMoneyMail Team

 

Email #7

Referral

Subject: eMoneyMail: for sending money over the Internet

Date: Wed, 15 Mar 2000 17:53:57 -0500 (EST)

From: Jim Bruene jim@netbanker.com

To: Kate Schultz kate@netbanker.com

Hi Kate Schultz!

I was just at the site http://www.emoneymail.com , and I thought you'd like to hear about it...

eMoneyMail, powered by Bank One, is the safe, easy way to send money over the Internet. You can now send money electronically to anyone in the United States by simply sending the person an e-mail message.

Please visit http://www.emoneymail.com to learn more and to start sending money to people you know!

 

eMoneyMail will offer fee-free payments
on April 22 in celebration of Earth Day.