Perfect Money has reportedly added support for the holding and transferring of bitcoins.
To be candid, the company can be considered as shady as they come. According to an article in Reuters in 2013, they are better known as the next destination for "e-money" transactions following the shutdown of Liberty Reserve.
Similar to "Liberty Reserve dollars" or "euros", Perfect Money has its virtual equivalent of dollar, euro and gold-based wallets. According to its homepage, the service can be used for transferring money, funding trading accounts and other Payments . It says to offer 4% annual interest on amounts stored in their service, which by far exceeds the rates offered by even the best savings accounts and may only be possible if funds are 'used' elsewhere.
The service was previously available for funding accounts on Bitcoin exchanges such as eCoin, whose published numbers also deserve healthy scrutiny. Now, users can apparently move bitcoins in and out of Perfect Money. Deposits are stated as free, and withdrawals are charged a hefty 2.5%.
The service is formally registered Startup Research & Investments LLC. It currently is based in Hong Kong, but according to the Reuters report, it has previously indicated Panama as its home. The company does not list a phone number for its offices or identify management or key employees.
The article also quoted Idan Aharoni, Head of Cyber Intelligence at EMC Corp's RSA security division, as saying that online scam artists and thieves have turned to Perfect Money to conceal activities in a similar manner as on Liberty Reserve. Hackers selling stolen credit information have reportedly stated on forums that they'll accept Perfect Money for payment.
