SpankPay Crypto Payment Service Shuts Down

An adult entertainment platform, SpankChain, is closing down its crypto payment system, SpankPay.

SpankChain is an Ethereum-based company that lost its payment service provider, Wyre, last month. Since then, it has failed to find an alternative.

On 16 February, SpankPay announced that its crypto custodian and banking partner, Wyre, had terminated their agreement. The platform ceased to provide settlement services to SpankChain effective from 13 February. The service provider cited "violations of any third-party payment processor or network rules" for the termination of the agreement.

A “targeted shutdown” of SpankPay

On 20 March, SpankPay announced that it would shut down its operations. The platform disclosed in a Twitter thread that it was a “targeted shutdown by Wyre". The settlement processor revealed that its crypto custodian's new money-transferring system "doesn't work with adult businesses".

According to SpankPay’s tweet, its previous crypto payment partner did not disclose this. The tweet said the move was "a shock" as the relationship with Wyre had been "supportive and respectful up until now".

Since the termination of the agreement in mid-February, the finance system has been looking for new payment processors. However, its efforts have been in vain as no other service providers agreed to collaborate.

According to SpankPay’s statement, most options it explored refused to work with it because of its affiliation with the adult entertainment industry.

Furthermore, it referred to the "hostile banking environment" for closing down operations. The Twitter thread said that operating in a hostile banking environment had "always been challenging", but that "escalating attacks have become untenable".

However, it has ensured users that their funds will be safe with the service.

SpankChain is an adult content platform based on the Ethereum blockchain. It offered adult content creators a platform where they could operate with dealing with traditional banks. The platform introduced its own settlement system to facilitate its audience.