Mercury Bank Locks Out Fintech Founders from Nigeria, Ukraine, and a Dozen Other Countries

U.S.-based fintech company Mercury is set to remove startups whose founders are based in or whose companies are headquartered in any one of at least 14 African countries and another six non-African states. Mercury Bank CEO Immad Akhund stated that this decision, while involving many countries, will have a limited impact on the bank, with affected client deposits making up less than 1% of Mercury’s total deposits.

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Deposits Affected Represent Less Than 1% of Mercury’s Total

Mercury Bank, a U.S. bank catering to fintechs, has announced that it will be withdrawing support from startups based in or founded by individuals residing in 14 African countries and six non-African nations. The bank said it made this decision to alleviate ongoing pressure on its operational teams and financial partners due to difficulties keeping up with regulatory compliance.

In a statement published on X, Mercury Bank CEO Immad Akhund cited a stricter regulatory environment as the driving reason behind this “difficult decision.” However, Akhund noted that the decision impacts a limited number of clients, with the deposits of those affected by the decision only accounting for less than 1% of Mercury’s total deposits.

Countries such as Mozambique, Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Zimbabwe are among the affected African nations. Ukraine is included in the list of non-African countries.

CEO Promises to Reevaluate Policy in the Future

Regarding the difficult decision to include Ukraine on the list — a home to many successful startups — Akhund provided the following comment detailing Mercury Bank’s reasoning:

“Ukraine in particular was challenging. There are many excellent startups in Ukraine, but about 20% of Ukraine is under sanctions. Verifying and monitoring where someone lives within a country to a high standard becomes very complex on a large scale, and the penalty for making even a single mistake is severe.”

Despite the current policy, Akhund has promised to review and potentially revise the policy in the future. The goal is to balance regulatory compliance with supporting a diverse range of global startups.

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(Featured image by David Trinks via Unsplash)

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First published in Bitcoin.com News. A third-party contributor translated and adapted the article from the original. In case of discrepancy, the original will prevail.

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