What is Operation Choke Point?

 

What is Operation Choke Point and why is this happening to my business?

Operation Choke Point is a government initiated program that puts pressure on banks/credit card processors to shut down merchant accounts including any banking capabilities for businesses and business owners based on the industry type and risk of the business. They are labeling these business types in the payments industry as High Risk and therefore these businesses are forced to find a High Risk Merchant Account provider. For example; think of the 2 largest banks in America….you have them in your head? Good. These banks are being hounded and/or sometimes forced by the FTC (Federal Trade Commission) and CFPB (Consumer Financial Protection Bureau) to close or halt banking and payment processing capabilities to all merchants on this “High Risk List” they have created, thus crippling the business.

 

This list includes but is not limited to the business types listed below***. These US banks are then forced to follow the mandate by the FTC and CFPB in fear of further regulation and fines by these government run entities. Being that the banks are mainly just facilitating the transactions, they must then pass down these mandates to the credit card processing companies. These providers at that point are given no option but to terminate all businesses in these industries regardless of their track record or history, positive or negative. Following this blanket termination they then apply new policies on what the banks are willing to accept and not accept which includes many well established businesses. In the payments and banking industry, providers have had to shut down many of their merchants whether they are good or bad. Now, in few cases the merchants actually may be conducting bad business or even fraud and in those cases the processors and banks together have the most experience to handle this because they have the specialist on staff and contacts within law enforcement to report it and handle it correctly.

 

Operation Choke Point has taken the power out of the most experienced hands and into the hands of government officials which have almost no experience managing banking and payments. We specialize in helping business in this horrible scenario get a new home where their voice is heard and they are not being judged by their business type alone, but rather by the character of their business and its operation.

 

Good businesses are being forced out of business because of this and if you feel it needs to stop…then help stop this poorly managed Operation Choke Point by signing the petition.

 

***High Risk List

• Non Profit Companies
• Ammunition Sales
• Firearm Sales
• Credit Repair Services
• Student Loan Services
• Nutraceuticals
• Pharmaceutical Drugs
• Dating Services
• Coin Dealers
• Hookah Dealers
• Government Grants
• Firework Sales
• Debt Consolidation Services
• Business Opportunities
• Lottery Sales
• Money Transfer Networks
• Pay Day Loans
• On-line Gambling
• Life-Time Memberships
• Tobacco Sales
• Surveillance Equipment
• Telemarketing
• Travel Clubs
• Timeshare Sales/Rentals