Help Centre
Account Management
I forgot my passcode, how can I set up a new one?
If you need to reset your passcode please follow these steps:
1. When asked for a passcode click on I forgot my passcode.
2. Choose your new passcode*.
3. Our support team will call you in the next 72 hours to verify your identity(sometimes we might request a selfie with an identity document by email).
4. You will receive an email when your new passcode is activated.
If you have any questions about this process or if you encounter a problem, send us an email at [email protected]
Note: Make sure your passcode is unique to your Mecena account and not be used for other online accounts. At the same time, it should be easy to remember. This is the best way to keep your account safe.
How do I update my phone number/email address?
In order to update the phone number or email address associated to your Mecena account, an account member should follow these steps:
1. Send us a request by email to [email protected]
2. Take a selfie of him/herself holding his/her ID near his/her face, and include it in the email request.
Once the info is updated, you will receive a confirmation by email.
What banking fees may be charged to my account?
Mecena acts as a non-exclusive commercial agent of payment services provided by Swan - nº RCS: 853 827 103.
Swan, and like any other financial institution, charges some fees to the end-customer on specific transactions and operations to cover for costs.
These fees are listed in Appendix 1 of Swan’s Terms of Use, which all customers receive and accept when opening an account. Some of these fees are related to the use of the Swan card (unless negotiated otherwise with our partner):
- Cash withdrawals at ATMs in France and the SEPA area: €1.
- Cash withdrawals at ATMs outside the SEPA area: 2% of the amount withdrawn.
- Payment for goods and services in shops or remotely outside the SEPA area: 2% of the amount paid.
- The exhaustive list of our banking fees is available in our Terms of Use, Appendix 1.
Until February 2023, the billing of these fees was not yet enforced, which enabled end-customers to benefit from free-of-charge transactions. To avoid charges, you can limit the usage of your account or close it at any time by contacting [email protected]. You may also check your billing from the dedicated page.
Excerpt from APPENDIX 1: Swan Account financial conditions
- Funding an account by credit card: 0.7% of the amount deposited + €0.12 incl. VAT.
- Cash withdrawals at ATMs in France and the SEPA area: €1, incl. VAT.
- Cash withdrawals at ATMs outside the SEPA area: 2% of the amount withdrawn.
- Payment for goods and services in shops or remotely outside the SEPA area: 2% of the amount paid.
- Call to "Customer Service": cost of a local call, depending on the operator.
- Improper use of the account (attempting or performing acts in violation of the law and/or this Account Agreement): €180, incl. VAT.
- Processing of judicial or administrative seizures, notice to third party holders: An amount equal to 10% of the amount of the seizure, up to a maximum of €20 incl. VAT per file.
- Fee for direct debit rejections due to an insufficient balance: €10 incl. VAT per rejected direct debit, up to the amount of the rejected direct debit.
- Drafting a circulation letter for a legal entity holder: €54, incl. VAT.
- Intervention fee for managing unauthorized overdrafts: €8 incl. VAT per transaction, up to a maximum of €80 incl. VAT per month.
- For accounts with a credit balance of more than €100,000, negative interest will be charged on the basis of the deposit facility rate defined by the European Central Bank and available at https://www.ecb.europa.eu/stats/policy_and_exchange_rates/key_ecb_interest_rates/html/index.fr.html.
This rate is currently -0.5%. The fee charged will be equal to the above-mentioned rate multiplied by the fraction of the account balance exceeding €100,000. Negative interest charges are calculated on a daily basis and added up at the end of the month. If the deposit facility rate is higher than 0, no fee will be charged by Swan for this.
Cards
How can I order a physical debit card?
As soon as we have successfully verified your identity, you'll be able to order a physical debit card. We'll ship it to the address you provided. Here's how you order:
- Log in to your Mecena Account. On the Cards tab, on the physical card, click on Order Now.
- We wiil ship your debit card to the address provided in the onboarding, and then click on Order card.
We'll text you a link to confirm your request.
How do I activate my debit card?
All you have to do to activate a physical debit card is to make your first payment at a store or ATM: you must insert your card and enter your PIN code.
Contactless will not work to activate your card.
What should I do if my card has been lost or stolen?
Don't worry if your card goes missing - you can block it anytime! To block it: Log in to your Mecena Account. Go to the Cards tab, on the physical card, and click on Permanently block. Select one of the following reasons:
- The physical card is lost or,
- The card has been stolen, then click on Permanently block.
We'll text you a link to confirm your request. We also invite you to order a new card.
I accidentally damaged/broke my card how do I get a new one?
Should your card become damaged or stop working, you can block it from your account and reorder a new card.
In order to block it permanently: Log in to your Mecena Account. Go to the Cards tab, on the physical card, and click the Permanently block field.
Select The card is not working properly and then click on Permanently block. We'll text you a link to confirm your request. We also invite you to order a new card.
My physical card order never arrived, what should I do?
Your card should arrive within 7 business days (count 3 additional business days for a non-French address). If you haven’t received it after this period, please get in touch with us by sending an email to [email protected].
This could be due to an incorrect shipping address or an issue with the carrier. Please double-check the address before ordering.If you haven't received your card for more than 10 business days after making your order, we suggest that you block it definitively:
- Log in to your Mecena Account. Go to the Cards tab, on the physical card, and click on Permanently block.
- Select The card was never received and click on Permanently block.
Your card will be returned to the manufacturer and destroyed upon receipt. You can then order a new card at no additional cost.
Transactions
Why has my transaction been denied?
Mecena acts as a non-exclusive commercial agent of payment services provided by Swan - nº RCS: 853 827 103.
Sometimes, Swan might deny certain transactions due to legal restrictions. If your transaction has been denied and you would like to understand why, please consult Swan’s General Conditions of use or read about which sensitive industries are restricted:
Swan builds infrastructure for businesses to embed financial services. While most types of companies can embed banking services with Swan, some aren't allowed to. This decision has nothing to do with whether we "like" or "dislike" a certain industry. We're open to the idea of opening up our service to more industries in the future! However, we're not currently set up to support businesses that pose a risk to Swan or its partners (brand risk, financial risk, or otherwise).Furthermore, we must uphold the requirements of the payment networks and institutions that help us run (like Mastercard), as well as the laws of each country we operate in .Examples of industries we cannot work with:
- Weapons and defense material providers
- Adult content and services
- Illicit narcotics
- Online and offline gambling
- Trading and custody of crypto assets
- Mixing of crypto assets
- Extractive industries (mining, coal, oil, natural gas, etc.)
- Palm oil productionPrecious stones, gems, and jewelsIndustry chemicals
- Tobacco
- Money remittance, currency exchange, FOREX
- Online bartering
- Religious activities
- Off-shore company services providers and domiciliation businesses
- Non-licensed payment services providers
- Street vendors
- Cash transfers
Please note: Being eligible for an account doesn't necessarily mean that the account will be validated.
How can I pay with my iPhone?
Apple Pay is not yet active in Mecena.
We are currently working on developing this service and will reach out to you once it’s completed. To use your virtual and/or physical debit cards with your iPhone, you must set up Apple Pay:
- Open the Wallet app and tap at the top right corner. You may be asked to sign in with your Apple ID or, depending on your iOS, sign in to iCloud with your Apple ID.Tap Debit or Credit Card and tap Continue.
- Position your card in front of the camera so that it appears within the frame to capture your card info, or enter the card details manually, then tap Next.
Swan will verify your information and send you an authentication code, enter the code and tap Next. Your Apple Pay is now all set and ready to go. You may check out this video from the Apple Support website for full instructions.
Do I need to be registered as a freelancer under my Country's Jurisdiction?
Yes, you do.
Due to compliance and VAT regulations, it is mandatory to be registered as a freelancer to obtain access to our financial services.
For our German creators, you must be registered as a Gewerbetreibender.
If you have any doubts about how to become a registered freelancer in your country, dive into our educational resources! Or Join our Discord community, we are here to help 😀.
Credentials
Where can I learn more about Swan's e-money license?
Swan, a regulated Electronic money institution, allows companies across Europe to provide secure banking services.
The requirements to acquire an e-money license are extremely rigorous. Swan, regulated and controlled by the ACPR (Central Bank of France), must regularly demonstrate the highest levels of risk and fraud detection and prove we fight effectively against money laundering and terrorist financing.
That is to say, you can be sure your money is safe with us!
How is my money secured?
A requirement of our e-money license is that your money is always secured no matter what happens to Swan. To provide this 100% guarantee, we opened a segregation account at a top European bank. This account is separate from the Swan account, and only you can access the money in it. In the unlikely event that our segregation bank also defaults, each customer is protected up to 100 000€ by the FGDR (Fonds de Garantie des Dépôts et de Résolution).
APIs
How Safe are mecena's api?
We understand that privacy and security are of concern and we will never encourage people to do something that we feel is unsafe. We want to be very transparent and clear about how things would work and how we'd keep things safe and secure.
When opening a Mecena Account using a Youtube profile, Mecena uses and transfers information received from Google APIs to any other app will adhere to Google API Services User Data Policy, including the Limited Use requirements.