Peer-to-peer digital pay firm ePayments is to close down after it was suspended due to concerns over its anti-money laundering controls.
Visitors to the London company’s website are greeted with the message: “ePayments has decided to close the business. All customers are requested to take their funds as soon as possible.”
ePayments, an electronic money institution focused on online payments for the affiliate marketing industry, was forced to suspend operations in 2020 by regulator the Financial Conduct Authority. This left customers unable to transfer, deal, withdraw, deposit funds or use their ePayments cards.
In December 2021 it claimed it was ready to “re-open for business” following investment from its shareholders. However it will now begin an “orderly, solvent wind-down”, according to a statement on its website.
“As you will be aware, the business has been closed for the past three years after our regulator identified some weaknesses in our financial crime controls,” the statement continued. “We have over this period been working hard to ensure these are up to the required standard, but in these extremely challenging and unprecedented global economic conditions, and with the business being restricted for such an extended period we can no longer sustain the business to build back to what the FCA require and a ‘business as usual’ state.”
It says it will now focus entirely on providing customers with refunds and working through the process of closing accounts.
“Your funds with us remain in safeguarded accounts. The FCA is aware of our decision and this communication,” the company said.
“As we close the business over the coming months we encourage those with funds in their e-Wallets to withdraw these funds, and those not currently open for refunds to supply any required information required for us to open the refund for you.”
Some users on social media claimed to have funds locked up in accounts.
The company had claimed to have more than a million users. Its team was previously involved with a crypto exchange called Digital Securities Exchange (DSX).