FTC Takes Action Against Payment Processor Humboldt Merchant Services for Knowingly Facilitating Payment Processing for Sham Merchants

Payment processing company Humboldt Merchant Services will pay $12 million and be permanently banned from processing payments for merchants with a heightened risk of potential fraud to settle allegations that Humboldt processed payments for merchants that defrauded consumers.According to the FTC’s complaint, Humboldt processed payments for more than 1,000 merchants that were shell entities that served as fronts or pass-throughs for fraudulent companies engaged in unauthorized billing scams, including Legion Media, which the FTC shut down in 2024. “Humboldt was processing paym...