Payment Processor Nuvei Must Implement Robust Merchant Screening Practices and Pay $4.85 Million to Settle FTC Charges that the Firm Facilitated Merchant Fraud

Nuvei Corporation, a global payment processor based in Canada, has agreed to pay $30 million to resolve Federal Trade Commission allegations that it knowingly processed payments for fraudulent merchants, including tech support scams targeting U.S. consumers. The FTC complaint states Nuvei maintained accounts for Reimage, an offshore tech support scam, processing over $30 million in consumer payments between 2017 and 2023. The company also allegedly provided payment processing for other deceptive schemes, such as business opportunity fraud and impersonation of government tax authorities. Nuvei’s U.S. subsidiary, Nuvei Technologies Inc., is specifically cited for enabling these operations despite prior fraud warnings from other payment processors.

The FTC’s complaint alleges Nuvei violated the FTC Act by engaging in unfair payment processing practices and assisting deceptive telemarketers in breach of the Telemarketing Sales Rule. The agency also claims Nuvei furnished payment accounts through its Cyprus-based merchant acquiring bank to overseas scams, allowing them to accept credit card payments from U.S. cardholders. The complaint highlights Nuvei’s failure to implement adequate screening measures to prevent fraudulent transactions, despite red flags from terminated merchants and excessive chargebacks.

Under the proposed settlement, Nuvei will pay $30 million for consumer redress and is barred from engaging in similar unfair or deceptive payment processing practices. The order prohibits the company from opening or maintaining accounts for merchants suspected of fraud or deception, requiring enhanced due diligence and monitoring. The FTC emphasized its commitment to maintaining a transparent and fraud-resistant payments system, noting that consumers and businesses rely on trust in these transactions.

The FTC filed the complaint and final order in the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona, with the Commission voting 2-0 to authorize the action. The case follows prior FTC enforcement against Reimage’s operators in 2024 and a separate lawsuit against Paddle, a Europe-based processor, for facilitating Reimage’s scheme. Nuvei’s settlement underscores the agency’s ongoing efforts to hold payment processors accountable for enabling fraudulent activities.