Sex Work - Don't Bank On It

Greetings and salutations my kinky brethren, hope you’re all enjoying the balmy sunshine.

I am currently laying outside enjoying the sunshine and contemplating the way I have watched the adult industries and communities change over the many years I have been fortunate to be a part of them. I have seen the move from Dommes advertising in shop windows, sex workers offering “French polishing” in phone boxes and the so called “tart cards” to the advent and use of the internet. Advertising via websites and directories, magazines both online and off. I have watched the growth and then decline and demise of social media as modern day promo tool.

One thing that the popularity of social media gave the purveyor of porn, kink and adult industries as a whole is the ability to entertain their interests from the comfort of their own home. Unfortunately, this also gave way to an influx of time wasters, catfishes and entitled idiots who think they shouldn’t have to pay professionals.

Recently, as I have discussed previously, there has been a crack down on adult industries and sex workers on social platforms. This appears to have now moved over to the world of financial services. With the increase of online work and bookings many sex workers relay on money transfers either as deposits or for full payment. Over the years many financial platforms have been launched to accommodate online money transfers, such as PayPal, Circle Pay, Google Pay … but now we see these either closing or closing to the adult industry. Ask any Professional sex worker and they have most likely had their PayPal or Circle Pay account suspended or shut down due to being “against the community standards policy” of said platform. The banks are now also making it harder to transfer money without leaving a paper trail in their bank account. Whereas before you could go to a bank with the account number and sort code of your preferred sex worker and pay cash straight into their account, now it appears that many banks have stopped allowing this. You can still make online transfers but where does that leave those not wanting to leave a lasting record of transactions?

The size of the worlds sex industry is immense and out does most other industries on both income and reach, yet it is still met with derision and prejudice. When will the government wake up and realise that they should support sex workers not criminalise them? When will other industries, such as banking and financial services, realise what a large economy they are turning away?

There are many ways you can get involved and be a part of my weekly column. Let me know your thoughts on this week’s column, email to discuss an interview or review or to have your questions answered.

Make sure to get your club and party reviews coming in, tell the world which are the best and worst swinging and BDSM venues that you have attended. Maybe you have found a hidden gem or have been disappointed by a well-known location, either way, tell the rest of the community.