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Barclays Shuts Down Bitcoin Publication’s Bank Account, Without Explanation

Last Updated March 4, 2021 4:51 PM
Samburaj Das
Last Updated March 4, 2021 4:51 PM

CoinJournal, a fellow bitcoin publication, saw its banking services come to an abrupt end after its banking provider Barclays terminated its business account.

CCN.com spoke to a representative of Manchester-based CoinJournal who was understandably none-too-pleased about the disruption. Elaborating on the need for a fiat-based banking solution, the representative stated:

[T]he account is used predominantly for taking payments via advertisers in dollars and exchanging these for Bitcoin and paying our staff and overheads using Bitcoin.

 

The representative also revealed that CoinJournal received no official warnings prior to its account closure. Even more alarmingly, Barclays still hasn’t given a reason for the extreme action.

The CoinJournal rep revealed:

When [we] asked for the explicit reason as to why our account has been closed, we were referred to [the bank’s] terms and conditions.

 

CoinJournal believes the decision taken by Barclays to close its business account was an “automated” call, after seeing a pattern of banking transactions involving prominent bitcoin exchange and service provider Circle.

The decision was likely “a result of us using Circle to transfer fiat from ad revenue into Bitcoin to pay our writers and some overheads,” the representative added.

What’s next for CoinJournal’s banking needs? “It’s a massive hindrance in the short term,” the rep stated, adding:

We are considering other options at the moment, though Bitcoin-friendly banks in the U.K. are in short supply.

 

The publication is looking for banking solutions that aren’t plagued by traditional and dated protocols.

“It’s a shame Fidor doesn’t offer business accounts,” the representative opined, citing the German digital bank as a possible banking banking partner.

https://twitter.com/FidorUK/status/791546960805322752 

CoinJournal received news of its account’s termination over a physical letter, sans reason. What would it be guilty of? Its association with bitcoin.

 Image from Shutterstock.