Overview
- In early July Valve received notice that one of PayPal’s merchant-acquiring banks would immediately stop processing Steam transactions in all currencies except EUR, CAD, GBP, JPY, AUD and USD.
- Valve linked the bank’s decision to worries about adult and NSFW content on Steam, tying it to a prior dispute with Mastercard and Visa over platform standards.
- Affected users are being directed to credit and debit cards, local payment options or Steam Wallet codes while Valve evaluates additional checkout methods.
- PayPal has offered no public explanation for its acquiring bank’s move beyond Valve’s statement, leaving the rationale largely opaque.
- The IGDA and other developer groups warn that allowing payment intermediaries to enforce content rules risks “creative suppression” and undermines artistic freedom.