12:09 PM EST, 01/24/2025 (MT Newswires) -- (Updates with Visa's response in the fifth paragraph.)

Visa (V) and Mastercard ( MA ) are facing a whistleblower complaint, alleging the companies failed to stop the flow of illicit revenue from child sexual abuse material and sex trafficking on the OnlyFans platform within their payment networks, Reuters reported Friday.

According to the report, the whistleblower is a senior credit card and banking compliance expert. The complaint was filed in January 2023 with the US Justice and Homeland Security Department and the Treasury Department's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network or FinCEN.

In the complaint, the whistleblower said the companies turned a blind eye to the use of their payment networks for illegal content on OnlyFans even after they were notified of the matter in 2021 and 2022, Reuters reported.

Reuters said it reviewed an email confirming that FinCEN had received the whistleblower complaint.

"We explicitly and unequivocally prohibit illegal activity on our network," Visa said in a statement emailed to MT Newswires. "We maintain robust compliance requirements for the financial institutions and merchants who submit transactions to the Visa network. Those unable to comply with our requirements will be terminated from our network."

Mastercard ( MA ), FinCEN, and the US Justice and Homeland Security Department did not immediately respond to MT Newswires' requests for comments.

(Market Chatter news is derived from conversations with market professionals globally. This information is believed to be from reliable sources but may include rumor and speculation. Accuracy is not guaranteed.)

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