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The policy prohibits or restricts financial services businesses operating without the required licenses or regulatory approvals in their jurisdiction from using Stripe's payment processing, including unlicensed money transmitters and cryptocurrency exchanges.
This analysis describes what Stripe's agreement states, permits, or reserves. It does not constitute a legal determination about enforceability. Regulatory applicability and practical outcomes may vary by jurisdiction, enforcement context, and individual circumstances. Read our methodology
This provision requires financial services businesses to hold applicable licenses before accessing Stripe's payment infrastructure; businesses in the cryptocurrency or payments space that have not yet obtained required licenses in all operating jurisdictions are ineligible to use Stripe's services in those markets.
Interpretive note: The specific licenses required and the jurisdictions in which they apply are not enumerated in the policy document, creating interpretive uncertainty for businesses operating across multiple markets with varying licensing frameworks.
Under this provision, financial services businesses including cryptocurrency exchanges must hold all applicable regulatory licenses before using Stripe's services, and unlicensed operation in any jurisdiction disqualifies the business from Stripe access in that market. The terms reserve to Stripe the right to verify licensing status and act on findings of non-compliance.
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use our services to build a similar service, identify or poach our users or publish any performance or benchmark analysis relating to the site reverse engineer, decipher, modify, or take source code from our site...
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"Businesses offering financial products and services, including unlicensed money transmission, cryptocurrency exchanges without applicable licenses, payment processing for unlicensed businesses, and other financial services operating without required regulatory approvals are identified as prohibited or restricted from using Stripe's services.Excerpt from Stripe's Restricted Businesses List
(1) REGULATORY LANDSCAPE: This provision directly engages the Bank Secrecy Act, FinCEN money services business registration requirements, state money transmitter licensing laws (which vary in scope and exemption structure across all 50 US states), and EU Payment Services Directive (PSD2) authorization requirements. Cryptocurrency businesses additionally interact with FinCEN virtual currency guidance and, in the EU, the Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulation. (2) GOVERNANCE EXPOSURE: High. The licensing requirement applies in each jurisdiction where the business operates, creating a multi-jurisdictional compliance matrix that must be continuously maintained. A gap in licensing in any single jurisdiction could disqualify the business from using Stripe in that market. (3) JURISDICTION FLAGS: US state money transmitter licensing creates the highest complexity, with each state having its own licensing threshold, exemption structure, and timeline. The EU MiCA framework creates a new harmonized licensing regime for crypto-asset service providers that will affect classification under this policy. The UK Financial Conduct Authority registration requirement for cryptoasset businesses creates a separate compliance track for UK operations. (4) CONTRACT AND VENDOR IMPLICATIONS: Businesses providing financial infrastructure to third parties should assess whether their service delivery model constitutes money transmission or payment processing requiring a license. Corporate counsel should confirm that the business holds all required licenses in each jurisdiction before signing the Stripe Services Agreement. (5) COMPLIANCE CONSIDERATIONS: Financial services businesses should prepare a licensing matrix covering all jurisdictions of operation and make this available to Stripe as part of the approval process. License renewals and new license requirements in jurisdictions where the business expands operations should trigger re-evaluation of Stripe policy compliance.
Regulatory citations, enforcement risk, and due diligence action items.
Provision-level monitoring, governance timelines, and regulatory mapping built from archived source documents and historical version tracking.
This provision requires financial services businesses to hold applicable licenses before accessing Stripe's payment infrastructure; businesses in the cryptocurrency or payments space that have not yet obtained required licenses in all operating jurisdictions are ineligible to use Stripe's services in those markets.
Under this provision, financial services businesses including cryptocurrency exchanges must hold all applicable regulatory licenses before using Stripe's services, and unlicensed operation in any jurisdiction disqualifies the business from Stripe access in that market. The terms reserve to Stripe the right to verify licensing status and act on findings of non-compliance.
ConductAtlas has identified this type of provision across 287 platforms. See the full comparison.
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