Stripe is one of the more common payment processing systems operating today. Entities of all kinds use it. It’s convenient, charges low fees, and is willing to do business with many types of companies.
However, Stripe will not usually do business with certain kinds of entities, stores, or industries. Let us look at some of those right now. We will also discuss what you can do instead if you happen to own a business operating in one of these niches.
Gun Merchants
If you are selling firearms, then do not be surprised if Stripe will not want to do business with you. The company considers firearms a high-risk industry because of the possibility of homicides, owners shooting themselves or family members by accident, etc.
If you are selling firearms, you will need a payment provider that offers an FFL gateway. These are Federal Firearm License gateways.
They are special payment processing solutions associated with this niche. There are several options, and you will likely want to find one that operates in your geographic region and charges reasonable fees.
Anyone Who Sells Counterfeit Goods
If you are running an eCommerce business that sells knockoff Gucci handbags, don’t be surprised if Stripe wants nothing to do with you, either. Even if what you’re doing is technically legal, the company will steer clear of that sort of thing.
You still have plenty of options, though. Some include EtonPay, GlobalPay, Glb-Pay, and King365Pay. You will probably want to research each one to see which seems like the best fit.
Gambling Entities
If you operate in the gambling space, you probably can’t use Stripe. This includes online casinos, sportsbooks, bingo, lottery scratch-offs, and fantasy sports for money, among others.
Once again, you will need to find an alternative. You might look into various e-wallets. These include, but are not limited to, Neteller, Skrill, and PaySafeCard.
You can also go the crypto route. You might accept payments in Bitcoin, Dogecoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, and more.
Heavily Regulated Industries
Stripe will not deal with some industries that are perfectly legal, but they are heavily regulated. The pharmaceutical industry would be a perfect example. If you are sending prescription drugs through the mail, you might have to find another payment option besides Stripe.
In this area, it makes sense to look at alternatives such as Ivy, HealNow, National Processing, and Corepay. There are more that are being added to this list every day, as sending prescription drugs through the mail seems to be a growth industry.
Anything Involving Financial Services
You also probably can’t use Stripe for anything having to do with financial services, such as cryptocurrency, money transmission, credit, or investment. Again, it’s not the illegality that Stripe shies away from, but more so the heavy amount of regulation involved.
Your options there are usually Adyen, PayPal, Authorize.net, and Square. You will need to ask each one if they support the kind of company you’re running, and again, you will want to compare the fees they charge.
