SpankPay, a cryptocurrency payment service from Ethereum-based adult entertainment platform SpackChain, has shut down after cryptocurrency payment provider Wyre terminated the service agreement.
The platform also said that it has continuously faced discrimination from traditional financial institutions.
SpankPay Shuts Down After Wyre Termination
In a tweet thread on Monday, SpankPay shared an email sent by Wyre on February 9, 2023, informing SpankChain co-founder and CEO Ameen Soleimani of their intention to terminate the agreement between both parties. According to SpankChain, Wyre’s action came as a shock, considering that the platform’s relationship with the payment provider has been “supportive and respectful.”
After long and difficult consideration, we have decided to close SpankPay, our crypto payment processor that we built as a safe haven for our community. Rest assured that your money is safe and we will get it to you as soon as possible.
-SpankPay (@SpankPay) March 20, 2023
SpankPay also claimed that the “termination was a shutdown led by Wyre because their new payment processor, Checkout dot com, doesn’t work with adult businesses.”
While SpankPay said user funds are safe, efforts to find new service providers have hit a snag as no one seems to want to provide financial services to companies running an adult entertainment business.
“Operating SpankPay in a hostile banking environment has always been challenging, but the increasing attacks have become untenable for our small team and the niche market we serve.”
The main adult website, Pornhub, faced a similar situation with traditional financial services, since PayPal stopped supporting payment to artists in 2019. Mastercard and Visa later blocked the use of their credit cards for online transactions. adult website in 2020 after a New York Times report alleged the site displayed child abuse, rape, and revenge pornography.
Shortly after Mastercard and Visa stopped support for Pornhub, the adult website said it would accept bitcoin and other crypto assets for the platform’s premium service.
Fight against discrimination against adult artists
Meanwhile, SpankPay said it will continue to challenge banks’ discrimination against the adult industry by “engaging lobbyists and meeting with lawmakers in Congress.”
“With SpankPay being discriminated against due to the nature of our business, we are more motivated than ever to end these extra-legal censorship practices imposed by financial institutions. Thanks for being part of our community. The fight continues.”
SpanChain thrown out SpankPay in 2019 as a crypto payment processor offering cheaper and seamless transactions for adult content consumers. The platform allowed users to make instant purchases and transactions using cryptocurrencies such as BTC, ETH, ZEC, LTC, and XMR.
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