1. Purpose and application
This Policy identifies the businesses and activities that may not be supported on the ClearYard platform. It is incorporated by reference into the ClearYard Platform Terms and forms part of them. It applies to every Customer, to every person the Customer permits to use the platform, and to the transactions a Customer submits, including transactions originated by or on behalf of its End Customers.
The restrictions in this Policy come from three sources: applicable law; the operating rules of the payment card networks and the ACH network; and the requirements of the processors, financial institutions and other partners through which payments are processed. Those requirements change, and this Policy changes with them. Because it constrains conduct rather than altering the commercial bargain, we may update this Policy on notice as a non-material change under Section 14 of the Platform Terms.
If a Customer’s business or a proposed transaction is not clearly addressed here, ask us before submitting it. Approval of an account does not constitute approval of every activity the account holder may undertake.
2. Prohibited businesses
We do not support businesses engaged in any of the following, whether as their principal activity or as a material line of business:
- any activity that is illegal under federal, state or local law, or that facilitates illegal activity by others;
- money services businesses, money transmission, currency exchange, cheque cashing, prepaid access, or the sale of stored value, in each case where a licence is required and not held;
- lending, debt collection on behalf of third parties, debt settlement, credit repair, or credit counselling, other than through a ClearYard product expressly offered for that purpose;
- virtual currency exchange, mining, initial coin offerings, and the sale of non-fungible tokens;
- gambling, betting, lotteries, sweepstakes and games of chance played for value;
- securities, commodities, derivatives, binary options, and investment or advisory services requiring registration that is not held;
- adult content and services;
- firearms, ammunition, explosives, and weapon components, other than the lawful use of explosives by a licensed operator in quarry or demolition work supported under Section 3;
- controlled substances, cannabis and cannabis-derived products, drug paraphernalia, and pseudo-pharmaceuticals;
- counterfeit goods, and goods or services that infringe the intellectual property of others;
- multi-level marketing, pyramid schemes, and get-rich-quick programmes;
- businesses that engage in unfair, deceptive or abusive acts or practices, including deceptive marketing, undisclosed negative-option billing, and misrepresentation of price, terms or delivery;
- shell entities and businesses that will not or cannot identify their beneficial owners; and
- any person or entity, or any transaction involving a person, entity or jurisdiction, subject to sanctions administered by the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control.
3. Restricted businesses requiring prior approval
The following may be supported, but only following additional diligence and written approval, and may be subject to reserve, volume limits or additional terms:
- quarry, mining and demolition operations using explosives under licence;
- businesses billing on behalf of, or collecting for, affiliated entities under common ownership;
- equipment rental and leasing where the rental agreement includes a purchase option;
- businesses with a material portion of revenue from government contracts subject to prompt-payment or assignment restrictions;
- businesses operating in more than one state where surcharging or lien practices differ materially between them; and
- any business that has previously been terminated by a processor or acquirer for cause, or that appears on an industry termination list.
4. Prohibited activities on the platform
Regardless of the nature of the business, Customers may not:
Submit transactions that are not their own. Process, or permit the processing of, a payment for goods or services supplied by another business, or on behalf of another business, whether affiliated or not, except under an arrangement we have approved in writing. This includes transaction laundering and factoring another supplier’s receivables through a ClearYard account.
Bill for what was not delivered. Submit an invoice or payment request for material or services not delivered or performed, for quantities not actually supplied, or for amounts the Customer knows or should know are disputed on delivery, quantity or quality grounds, without disclosing the dispute.
Collect what is not theirs to collect. Use the platform to collect an obligation the Customer has assigned, pledged or sold to a third party, or that the Customer has released by an unconditional waiver, or that is required by an existing lender arrangement to be paid into a different account, in each case without disclosing that fact to us.
Misuse payment authorizations. Initiate a debit without a valid, current authorization from the person whose account is debited; alter the amount, timing or frequency of a debit beyond what the authorization permits without obtaining a new authorization or giving the notice required; continue to debit after an authorization has been revoked; or fail to retain and produce an authorization on request.
Evade limits or monitoring. Split a transaction to stay below a limit, structure activity to avoid reporting, submit transactions through multiple accounts to circumvent a restriction, or provide false or incomplete information during onboarding or in response to a review.
Misuse card acceptance. Impose a surcharge except as expressly permitted under the Platform Terms and applicable law and network rules; impose any fee on a debit or prepaid card transaction; require a minimum or maximum other than as network rules permit; provide cash advances; accept a card for an existing debt that was not originally incurred on that card, other than as expressly permitted; or submit a transaction after a refund or cancellation.
Exceed network return thresholds. Originate ACH debits in a manner that causes return rates to exceed the thresholds set by the ACH rules, currently 0.5% for unauthorized returns, 3.0% for administrative returns and 15.0% overall, or fail to remediate promptly when a rate approaches a threshold.
Misrepresent ClearYard. State or imply that ClearYard is a bank, that funds held or in transit are deposits, that ClearYard insures funds, or that ClearYard has approved, endorsed or underwritten the Customer’s business. Describe ClearYard’s role accurately in any communication to an End Customer.
Compromise the platform. Access the platform other than through the interfaces we provide; reverse engineer it; introduce malicious code; probe or test its security without authorization; or use it to store or transmit information unrelated to the services.
5. What we do about violations
If we believe this Policy has been violated, or that a violation is likely, we may, immediately and without prior notice: decline or reverse a transaction; suspend or limit access to the platform; withhold or delay settlement; establish or increase a reserve; require additional information or documentation; terminate the Customer’s account; and report the Customer and its principals to a payment network, an acquirer, an industry termination list, or a regulator, where the network rules or applicable law require or permit it.
These remedies are in addition to, and not in substitution for, our rights under the Platform Terms.
6. Reporting a violation
If you believe a ClearYard account is being used in violation of this Policy, email [email protected] with the details. We investigate every report and do not disclose the identity of the reporter except where required by law.