Actually this is somewhat 'old' news... I am not certain, but I think PayPal may have started accepting Malaysians a couple of months ago already.

Anyway, I just found out about it myself less than 2 weeks ago. And yes, I have a "Business Account" with them since last weekend but it remains unvalidated for now.

Now for the sad news... according to the information on their website, there appears to be NO way for me to withdraw funds out from my PayPal account! I don't get it... how would PayPal expect someone like me to actually use this service if I cannot get access to these funds at the end of the day?

how would PayPal expect someone like me to actually use this service if I cannot get access to these funds at the end of the day?
- It would be like having another bank account, except, it would be online transfers only.

A neat site to go to every so often just to check up on Paypal is: http://paypal.typepad.com/

And why should things be any different for Malaysians than they are for certain other countries? That's my gripe...

Why is it considered "acceptable" for users/clients/customers from some countries to have to jump through hoops to get the service for the same price (sometimes more)? Where are these people getting their Marketing ideas from? If they cannot offer equal service to people from certain countries than they should just not accept them altogether. I mean when PayPal was not accepting Malaysians, I was disappointed but I didn't complain either.

The only, I repeat the ONLY, reason why I am even considering them is cause I have very limited choices and it's simply the 'least evil' of the bunch. Being made to feel "lesser" like this now, I have no loyalty and would drop them in a heartbeat if something better comes along and something better WILL come along, I am sure.

I am not sure why Malaysia is on the bad side of PayPal, but I know some countries are "blacklisted" because of a lot of internet crimes. Apparently, it is not worth PayPal's time to have Malaysians use their service at all.

I don't know the reason why, but that is why I would think that an entire country would not be able to use their service.

Also, they might be limiting specific features like withdrawing money just because PayPal has not yet expanded to Malaysia.

It also could be the banking system. Every country has its own banking system. In the U.S., it is governed by NACHA.

Plus in the U.S., there are about 30 states that you have to pay $10,000 a year to if you ACH funds into that state via a third party. There might have been some type of fees as well that Paypal did not think was worth it And they probably do not want to expand too fast. The less attention they bring to themselves right now, the better

I wonder if they ban Nigerians... anyway.... that's another story.

JDS, I sure hope things get better for folks regarding PayPal. You'll never be a lesser person in MY eyes. Same probably goes for all of us here.

This is why I respect your posts Corey.... It's easier to scream "Fraud" or "Security" (current buzzwords / hot excuses when people cannot explain something intelligently) at the drop of a hat; but as usual, you're on the ball!

To PayPal's credit, they did explain (to me via a support email) that they were working on adding the functionality for us Malaysians to withdraw funds to our local banks but it's still a "work-in-progress".

My gripe, once again (in case anyone still misunderstands my earlier comment), is that I don't understand why PayPal would enable / accept Malaysians (or any other country) when they are clearly not yet ready.

Why is offering a half-baked solution to someone from a foreign country considered a good (acceptable) business decision?

Why is offering a half-baked solution to someone from a foreign country considered a good (acceptable) business decision?
- You do not recieve every single option that you would if you were in the US. But I wouldn't say it is a half-baked solution. What else do they limit?

Would you rather not have PayPal now, and wait until they give access to withdrawl to your local bank? I am sure that there are a lot of PayPal users who are just fine the way it is.

I would rather have PayPal without being able to transfer funds to my bank than not have it at all.

It is good to hear that they plan to expand their features to Malaysians. Since PayPal has their focus on eBay, they will continue to expand their service area.

Wow - I know what I might be talking about even when I am not so sure. LOL. But I do agree with you, why offer only half the solution. Since every country has its own banking system - Paypal should learn from it.

It sounds like they are BETA testing. How many people will sign up? Will it be a wise business decision to go & complete this project. My hope is - Paypal knows what they are getting into and won't back down. It would be horrible if they stopped the process for whatever reason & stuck with the half-baked solution