Any Canadians having trouble withdrawing cash at ATMs using their Paxum Card?

[mopek1]

I used to be able to but not anymore. The atms allow me to go through the entire process and then cancel the transaction at the last minute.

Paxum support told me to only use machines that have the UnionPay logo. None of the ATMs I have used in the past (here or abroad) have any logo of any kind, and I have been using them for years. I told them that, but they keep replying with the same advice, to use machines with UnionPay logos.

I checked AI, got this:

"The reason your Paxum card suddenly stopped working at major institutions like RBC is due to a quiet, systemic backend shift in how Canadian banks route international UnionPay transactions, rather than a problem with the physical ATMs themselves. Most Canadian ATMs do not display international network logos on the outside of the machine; instead, they only display the Interac logo. Major Canadian banks have quietly updated their terminal software to prioritize domestic Interac chip protocols, which has inadvertently caused international UnionPay prepaid cards (like Paxum) to time out or decline during the handshake process."

But AI can be wrong. Just looking to see if anyone else in Canada has experienced this problem

[Shoplifter]

Thank you Mr. Carney. He is really tightening the grip on Canadian citizens.

[Jman]

I was able to last Friday. I never keep a big balance, I'll give it a try next time I am around an ATM accepting UnionPay

[fris]

never heard of union pay

[fuzebox]

Originally Posted by fris

never heard of union pay

Only a $24b chinese banking network that has been around for 25 years.

[Cyrano]

Yes! My Paxum UnionPay card no longer works at TD ATMs. I'd venture to say this happened around two or three weeks ago. It does work at Scotia and, last I checked, RBC is fine too.

I was worried that perhaps it was just me and my card -- thanks for posting this.

[Huggles]

Originally Posted by Jman

I never keep a big balance

This is the way

[fris]

my epassporte card doesnt work either.

[CharliGo]

You’re not alone. I’ve been having the exact same problem with Paxum for over a month now.
Everything used to work fine, but now—at almost every ATM (especially RBC, TD, and Scotiabank)—the entire process goes through, only to end in a decline or a cancelled transaction right at the very end. Meanwhile, the card shows as active in the app, and there is a balance available.
Paxum support keeps giving me the same canned response: "use ATMs displaying the UnionPay logo." I’ve already written to them three times explaining that in Canada, 95% of ATMs don't display any international logos at all—only Interac. They simply ignore this fact and keep copy-pasting the same generic text.
The AI ​​you quoted is most likely right. It really does seem like Canadian banks have implemented some backend changes regarding how they process UnionPay transactions. A lot of Paxum users are currently complaining about this exact same situation.

For now, the workarounds I’ve seen people using include:

Trying small, independent ATMs (not the major banks).
Using ATMs located in Chinese neighborhoods (UnionPay sometimes works better there).
Some people are transferring funds to crypto first, and then withdrawing from there.

Which city are you running into this issue in? Maybe a local can point you toward some ATMs that actually work.

[mopek1]

Originally Posted by CharliGo

Paxum support keeps giving me the same canned response: "use ATMs displaying the UnionPay logo." I’ve already written to them three times explaining that in Canada, 95% of ATMs don't display any international logos at all—only Interac. They simply ignore this fact and keep copy-pasting the same generic text.

Same here. I said the exact same thing and the reply was to only use ATMs that have a UnionPay logo. We went back and forth 3 times and each time they just kept telling me the same thing,. It was like talking to a brick wall. I'm sure they understood what I was saying, but were probably under orders to just keep giving out the same canned reply.

Paxum is helpless to the decisions big banks make, I get it. But I don't see how ignoring an issue makes them look less strong. If anything it makes them look weak and tarnishes their reputation. Honesty and openness always earn people's trust. And the opposite is true too.

I did find one ATM out of the way in a small store that worked. But I'm bracing for not being able to use Paxum the way I always have, and that would suck.

[Cyrano]

https://www.unionpayintl.com/cardhol...viceCenter/atm

Click "Search on Terms" and select your city from the dropdown. The list of ATMs accepting UnionPay cards in my particular city has declined substantially. For the Big 5, it's now limited to CIBC and Scotiabank.

As recently as a few months ago I was able to use pretty much any ATM. Unfortunate.

[blackmonsters]

Another Paxum success story.

[fuzebox]

Originally Posted by Cyrano

https://www.unionpayintl.com/cardhol...viceCenter/atm

Click "Search on Terms" and select your city from the dropdown. The list of ATMs accepting UnionPay cards in my particular city has declined substantially. For the Big 5, it's now limited to CIBC and Scotiabank.

As recently as a few months ago I was able to use pretty much any ATM. Unfortunate.

This is not a Paxum issue.

[mopek1]

Originally Posted by fuzebox

This is not a Paxum issue.

Yes and no.

If I was Paxum I'd send out an email to all Canadian customers saying that there have been reports that many users are not able to use ATMs to withdraw cash like they used to. That they believe the issue is on the banking side (Canadian Banks) and that they are looking into it and will be trying to reach out to them to see if they can work something out to have Paxum included in the list of accepted cards.

That kind of transparency and communication goes a long way to building customer trust in any business. Giving canned responses that don't address the customer's questions do the opposite.

[fuzebox]

Originally Posted by mopek1

Yes and no.

If I was Paxum I'd send out an email to all Canadian customers saying that there have been reports that many users are not able to use ATMs to withdraw cash like they used to. That they believe the issue is on the banking side (Canadian Banks) and that they are looking into it and will be trying to reach out to them to see if they can work something out to have Paxum included in the list of accepted cards.

That kind of transparency and communication goes a long way to building customer trust in any business. Giving canned responses that don't address the customer's questions do the opposite.

You're not wrong, but Paxum hasn't had decent customer service in 10+ years, and back then it was "hit up Ruth directly".

I'm genuinely shocked people still use them for even hundreds of dollars.

[mopek1]

Originally Posted by fuzebox

I'm genuinely shocked people still use them for even hundreds of dollars.

Many webmasters and some businesses don't have many choices or options when transferring money or getting paid depending on where they live, circumstances etc. So many countries have so many rules that's hard to get one or two really good payment transfer methods to work universally for everyone.