Personal Development for Smart People Forums - View Single Post

JustinPopovic · 10-23-2009, 05:11 PM

One of the many "joys" of business is dealing with the problems that arise as you build your company.

My business partner has just learned first hand how you simply cannot prepare for everything and you have to be savvy enough to come up with new solutions.

He is an information marketer. He sells high value/high quality information products (teaching SEO, marketing skills, ebooks on various business topics, etc..).

He does a lot of volume with Paypal.

Well this past week, PayPal suddenly froze his account without any explanation. Keep in mind he had been a client for over 10 years after THEY solicited him to use their service.

The explanation was that there was "suspicious" activity on the account. They did not define what "suspicious" meant. He got their support team on the phone and they eventually re-opened his account.

Like any sane business person, he decided to cash out some of his larger reserves fearing that his account could once again be closed at any time. Last night, he logs in to find out that his account has been completely suspended for 180 days...FINAL. No appeal, no questions, nothing!

They raised a red flag because he withdrew some of his reserves this week. To them...this was suspicious again. Instead of looking at him as a loyal 10 year client and asking him to provide proof of where each dollar was allocated (because he can prove that EVERY transaction was legit, legal business), they simply closed his account and told him he can have his money in 180 days.

Now I know Paypal has to have certain checkpoints and policies in place to ensure criminals are not using their system for illegal purposes. But the way they treated him, a legit business owner, is brutal.

I write this because I see a lot of hard working, determined entrepreneurs on this forum and I want you to be aware of what happens when you use some these systems. I personally still use Paypal but I am going to be much more careful about how I conduct my business with them.

I hope this saves some of you readers from potential headaches that could arise.

10-23-2009, 05:11 PM	#1 (permalink)
JustinPopovic Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Ontario Posts: 245	PayPal Screwed My Business Partner One of the many "joys" of business is dealing with the problems that arise as you build your company. My business partner has just learned first hand how you simply cannot prepare for everything and you have to be savvy enough to come up with new solutions. He is an information marketer. He sells high value/high quality information products (teaching SEO, marketing skills, ebooks on various business topics, etc..). He does a lot of volume with Paypal. Well this past week, PayPal suddenly froze his account without any explanation. Keep in mind he had been a client for over 10 years after THEY solicited him to use their service. The explanation was that there was "suspicious" activity on the account. They did not define what "suspicious" meant. He got their support team on the phone and they eventually re-opened his account. Like any sane business person, he decided to cash out some of his larger reserves fearing that his account could once again be closed at any time. Last night, he logs in to find out that his account has been completely suspended for 180 days...FINAL. No appeal, no questions, nothing! They raised a red flag because he withdrew some of his reserves this week. To them...this was suspicious again. Instead of looking at him as a loyal 10 year client and asking him to provide proof of where each dollar was allocated (because he can prove that EVERY transaction was legit, legal business), they simply closed his account and told him he can have his money in 180 days. Now I know Paypal has to have certain checkpoints and policies in place to ensure criminals are not using their system for illegal purposes. But the way they treated him, a legit business owner, is brutal. I write this because I see a lot of hard working, determined entrepreneurs on this forum and I want you to be aware of what happens when you use some these systems. I personally still use Paypal but I am going to be much more careful about how I conduct my business with them. I hope this saves some of you readers from potential headaches that could arise.