BitChute’s Bank Accounts Have Been Frozen And Suspended In Attempt To End Platform

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Now, nearly at the end of 2022, two different banks have our money, HSBC has held it for almost two years.

Alterative video platform BitChute is having their bank accounts suspended and their balances withheld from the owner’s access in order to pay the bills.

Ray Vahey, BitChute Founder and Chief Executive, made the announcement on a fundraising campaign

Two years ago, BitChute became the target of an activist group that attempted to shut us down by pressuring our suppliers. As a result, we lost some server hosting, our office space, and other suppliers. We also lost our bank account with HSBC. A bank account we had held in good standing and without any issues since we launched in 2017.

We initially tried to open a new account with a different bank and transfer our money. However, the new bank rejected us just as the funds had reached them. Our money was returned to HSBC, but we could no longer access it, and even today, we still have not retrieved our money from HSBC.

In August 2021, after failing to get a resolution through the HSBC complaints process, we requested arbitration through the UK’s banking Ombudsman. We were informed of a long wait due to Covid, which had resulted in many bank-related problems for businesses. It wouldn’t be until November 2022 that our case would be assigned.

Since arbitration started we have provided many details including the bank account where HSBC could send our money. Within a week of handing over that information, that new bank account was suspended without notice. We informed the Ombudsman that we do not want to give HSBC additional bank accounts and prefer any transfer from HSBC use a third party such as escrow, even a bag of cash would do. A necessary action that will likely lengthen the process

Sometimes you can't believe what is really going on and it reminds me of a similar story with PayPal which blocked and closed a number of accounts as those holding them had engaged in gender-critical views...

I strongly agree with what the founder of Bitchute has said in his speech. It's unacceptable and despicable that a platform, a group of people, or an individual will be excluded from the monetary system, will have their accounts blocked or closed and their asserts frozen because of their political views and ideas and/or because they promote free speech.

The above constitutes an attack on freedom of speech and an attack on liberty and democracy. It's the definition of discrimination and the institutions engage in these actions should be called out for it and the necessary steps should be taken to avoid similar matters in the future.

There needs to be a lot of pressure on PayPal, HSBC, and whoever else. If PayPal continues upon the same way then people should stop using their services and close their accounts with them. Likewise for HSBC or any other bank.

a reply to: Asmodeus3

BitChute apparently isn't part of their 'big club'.

Cheers

Democracy they say?

a reply to: F2d5thCavv2

This is the part of Democracy that Ukraine is fighting for...

Yet I m quite sure the banks are just fine about accounts used by criminal gangs or corrupt politicians for money laundering, tax evasion and undeclared backhanders 😡

You know, Alex Jones may have got beaten over the head financially, but he's still got plenty of VALID reasons to point and laugh!

Central banks are thick roots of evil. All digital currencies that are centralized are, including using your debit/credit card to purchase goods.

originally posted by: F2d5thCavv2
a reply to: Asmodeus3

BitChute apparently isn't part of their 'big club'.

Cheers

It looks like it.

Let's froze their accounts as they don't seem to peddle the official narratives.

originally posted by: CthulhuMythos
Yet I m quite sure the banks are just fine about accounts used by criminal gangs or corrupt politicians for money laundering, tax evasion and undeclared backhanders 😡

It's convenient I would say.

a reply to: Asmodeus3

I just went to the Bitchute News & Politics home page. Hate, lies, conspiracy theories wall to wall. Predominantly right-wing, of course; I couldn't see anything obviously from the left. But left or right, not a word of truth in the whole lot.

HSBC's decision is wise and entirely understandable. Their moral hazard and legal compliance people must have thrown a fit when they started looking at this particular customer. Any bank that handles them is probably in legal jeopardy.

I wonder if they would have a ground to stand on in suing the gov for YouTube monopoly laws. I am sure there is a way they can twist this to benefit considering these same banks aren't pulling that crap on YouTube.

From what I am aware YouTube lost a lot of viewers, so this might simply be YouTube handing money to banks to freeze accounts.

With that said, I think they should sue and attack gov with anti-monopoly laws, as this bank shouldn't be allowed to bolster YouTube by blocking it's competition. Since most banks are gov regulated in one way or another, they may just be able to pull it off and get their account restored.

Best part is as long as they can prove good standig with the banks it should be a clear cut case.

There has to be a justifiable reason to hold their money or else it would be illegal to hold their money.

Gee, I wonder what the reason is. They left that entire part out. What does being "targeted" by an activist group 2 years ago mean?

a reply to: Astyanax

Compared to the absolute hatred and finger-pointing towards the unvaccinated during the mandates that went pretty much world-wide from all mainstream media and the like? Saying that we should be "cast out of society" arresting cafe owners for allowing an unvaccinated person to sit down and have their cup of coffee?

What about all the hatred from the celebrities almost calling out to have us unjabbed folks hunted down, locked up and far more!

Pull the other one, mate. I despise hypocrisy.

originally posted by: Astyanax
a reply to: Asmodeus3

I just went to the Bitchute News & Politics home page. Hate, lies, conspiracy theories wall to wall. Predominantly right-wing, of course; I couldn't see anything obviously from the left. But left or right, not a word of truth in the whole lot.

HSBC's decision is wise and entirely understandable. Their moral hazard and legal compliance people must have thrown a fit when they started looking at this particular customer. Any bank that handles them is probably in legal jeopardy.

No bank has any right to suspend, froze, block, an account and withhold the money that belong to someone else. It's just despicable and unlawful.

Only if there is a legal investigation against a person or a group by the State where there are allegations for crimes committed, then your bank accounts and assets can be frozen.

originally posted by: Astyanax
a reply to: Asmodeus3

I just went to the Bitchute News & Politics home page. Hate, lies, conspiracy theories wall to wall. Predominantly right-wing, of course; I couldn't see anything obviously from the left. But left or right, not a word of truth in the whole lot.

HSBC's decision is wise and entirely understandable. Their moral hazard and legal compliance people must have thrown a fit when they started looking at this particular customer. Any bank that handles them is probably in legal jeopardy.

Let me guess...
Left-wing?

originally posted by: Thrumbo
There has to be a justifiable reason to hold their money or else it would be illegal to hold their money.

Gee, I wonder what the reason is. They left that entire part out. What does being "targeted" by an activist group 2 years ago mean?

Only the State can interfere to froze assets and accounts when there are allegations about crimes committed. Otherwise any other action is by definition unlawful and banks should be sure for this.

Imagine your bank account is blocked, frozen, or even closed and your money is withheld as your bank doesn't agree with your political views that you posted and shared on Twitter, on Bitchute, or here on ATS.

a reply to: Asmodeus3

There was a reporter in Ukraine at the start of the conflict a British national, they froze his Bank account in the UK, and he was just reporting what he saw and heard they did not like it. So they can and will do what they think is required. They obviously are forcing people to sing the right set of songs. That's why we have got all this nonsense at the moment. They changed the law a while ago to state the fact that when your money is in a Bank it is their money. Bail-ins are a fact these days.

originally posted by: anonentity
a reply to: Asmodeus3

There was a reporter in Ukraine at the start of the conflict a British national, they froze his Bank account in the UK, and he was just reporting what he saw and heard they did not like it. So they can and will do what they think is required. They obviously are forcing people to sing the right set of songs. That's why we have got all this nonsense at the moment. They changed the law a while ago to state the fact that when your money is in a Bank it is their money. Bail-ins are a fact these days.

Expectable to try and punish the reporter who didn't peddle the narrative.

But are you sure that the money you have in the bank belongs to the...ban?! I find this extraordinary and on what legal basis your money doesn't belong to you when you choose to deposit them to a bank?

a reply to: Asmodeus3

come on the name should give it away, hsbc or hong kong and shanghai bank, its THE western bank that's embedded deepest into China's financial system and key to internationalising the RMB.. when talking about RMB or even the electronic e-Rmb you're looking at the footprint of HSBC.

really not shocking to see them adopting CCP centric rulesets just as US banks adopt US democrat rulesets..

long term its going to be an interesting clash as these giants fight to impose their controllers rulesets onto the rest of the world, Democrat progressives or CCP progressives

having worked in finance (city) and with (a) central bank (Boe) in process improvements my prediction is we''ll be heading from centralisation back into into decentralisation (part of the normal cycle) and we'll see a number of smaller startups appearing at the local level.. my betting is akin to the formation of the mutuals and co-ops in the 1850/60s which came at the tail end of the mega corporation period of control 1600 to 1870.. which bookmarked the first great depressionary period (1870s to 1890s)

we mirror that period far more than the second great depression..