Sending money refers to moving funds from one person to the other. You can send money to buy goods and services, pay someone their salary, give someone a prize and so on. There are various platforms that you can use to transfer funds. They include banks, credit unions, and mobile wallets. In most cases, when transferring funds, the recipient will always know who has sent them money as their transaction message shows the sender. Today we want to see how to send money anonymously.
Anonymous means unknown. When talking about sending money anonymously, it means that you do not want the recipient to know that you are the one who has sent them money. Maybe you want to pay someone’s hospital bill and do not want them to know the source, you want to send funds to a children’s home without them knowing your real identity, and many other reasons why you would wish to remain unknown when you send funds.
Nowadays, the internet has brought about the possibility of sending money online. You can open a bank, credit union, or mobile wallet account online, recharge online, and transfer funds to various recipients. You only need to have the correct information about the recipient, and you are good to go. Depending on the platform, you can send money with a checking account number, username, phone number, or email address.
Some Platforms To Send Money
You can use various platforms to move funds from one person to another. They include the following:
i) Banks
Banks are financial companies that allow you to open accounts and deposit money for various financial companies. You can have a checking or savings account with your bank. There are also other types of accounts that you can open for your transactions. When sending funds, a checking account is more beneficial.
You can send money with a checking account number instantly to account holders within your branch. You can also send money to accounts within other institutions by using the account and routing numbers. Send funds online upon logging in to your bank’s website or using a banking app. Alternatively, you can send money to someone else at a physical branch with the assistance of bank tellers.
ii) Credit Unions
Credit unions are member-owned financial institutions that aim to uplift the financial capability of their members. You can join a credit union if you have a common bond with the existing members, such as worshiping in the same church, living in the same locality, or working in the same place. The institutions use the same formats of sending money as those used by banks.
Banks and credit unions allow you to write checks to send money to others. The recipient then cashes out or deposits the check at a bank, in a mobile wallet, or credit union.
iii) Mobile Wallets
Mobile wallets are financial institutions that allow you to manage your funds online. Examples include PayPal, Payoneer, Venmo, and Cash App. They are easy to use, and you only need to add a bank or supported payment card to top up your balance for your transactions.
For example, PayPal allows you to send money to others using their email ID. Cash App allows you to use the recipient’s $Cashtag, phone number, or email associated with their accounts when sending funds.
Sending money using mobile wallets is fast since the funds can arrive instantly at the recipient’s account.
iv) Prepaid Cards
Prepaid cards are payment cards that do not link to any financial institution. However, you may link them at will to a bank, credit union, or mobile wallet account. The fact that the card does not necessarily link to a bank account is the main difference between it and debit cards.
Prepaid cards allow you to manage your account online using a mobile app whereby you can send money to others from the app. If transferring money from one card to another, you may require the phone number or the email address associated with the receiving card account.
v) Money Orders
A money order is a document that resembles a check but is a bit different. When sending funds via money order, you pay the amount to send to the cashier; then, they get the check ready. You should sign your check before sending it. The recipient can get it through postal services and deposit or cash it out at the nearest bank.
Ways To Send Money Anonymously
If you want to send funds anonymously, then that can be easy as there are various ways you can do it. Let us look at the various ways below.
i) Use PayPal
You can create a PayPal account with an email address not tied to your name. PayPal accepts any functional email address as long as you use the proper documentation and bank account to open your account.
Since recipients will only see your email ID when you send them money, it is an excellent opportunity to send funds anonymously. Payoneer, similar to PayPal, also allows you to transfer funds to others anonymously. You can send money to someone else and what they see is your email ID.
ii) Use money transfer services like Western Union and Xoom
Western Union allows you to send funds to others at a physical branch or online. You do not have to tell the recipient who you are, as the funds will reflect in their bank account. If they inquire, their bank can tell them that the funds entered their account from Western Union or whichever transfer service you use.
iii) Have someone else deliver money
You can have someone deliver funds to someone on your behalf. You can tell them not to tell the recipient who gave them funds, especially if you wanted to help them anonymously. Even though it is an old way of sending money, it is still effective even today if you use an honest person.
Final Thought
Sending money refers to moving funds from one person to the other through various platforms such as banks, credit unions, prepaid card accounts, and mobile money wallets. Banks are the most familiar ways of sending funds to others, whereby you can use wire or ACH transfer methods. You can also transfer money to someone else by writing a check. Online transfer of funds is fast and convenient.
