Big Banks, Credit Card Companies on Track to Monitor, Flag Gun Purchases

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At the recent New York Times DealBook conference, Amalgamated Bank CEO Priscilla Sims Brown said they are working to create a Merchant Category Code (MCC) for “detection scenarios” that would require banks to file “Suspicious Activity” reports with authorities if triggered. 

The International Organization for Standardization approved a new code for banks to use in firearm transactions this past Fall. Amalgamated states the policy would be similar to how they detect fraud.

“We’re at the very early stages of this – this particular code just got approved in October – so those detection scenarios are still being brought together,” Brown said. “But as this is implemented, those scenarios will be used.” 

While several of the major payment processors have pledged to implement the new code, Visa believes it will be ineffective. According to Visa, they don’t have access to what the client is purchasing, so they’d have no idea whether the cardholder bought a rifle or camping gear. 

SEE ALSO: Everytown Celebrates New Banking Codes to Track Gun Purchases, Monitor Gun Owners  

Former New York Police fraud investigator, Kevin Sullivan, doesn’t agree with Visa’s criticism. 

“Banks will complain this is the government’s job and it’s not our job, but you know what? They are the only ones with the ability to do this,” Sullivan said to the New York Times in 2018 after the Pulse Night Club shooting in Florida.

Sullivan currently consults with banks as the president of the Anti-Money Laundering Training Academy. 

While Brown and Sullivan both seem to be on board with banks tracking gun purchases, Rep. Elise Stefanik (N.Y.), the chairwoman of the House Republican Conference, led the charge against the MCC in a letter to the banking industry, signed by 100 republican lawmakers. 

“This is a transparent attempt to chill the exercise of constitutionally protected rights and to circumvent existing legal restrictions on the creation of firearm registries by the government,” reads the letter, dated Sept. 14, 2022. 

Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) also penned a letter in Sept. addressed to the heads of the largest credit card companies in the world, stating the new system is “ripe for abuse” and would negatively impact minority groups.

An excerpt from Sen. Hawley’s letter:

Too often, companies have abused their market power to target the constitutional rights of conservatives and others with minority viewpoints. Big Tech companies systematically deplatformed those who sought to discuss the efficacy of masks and vaccines or raise concerns about the integrity of our elections. The crowdfunding platform GoFundMe blocked donations to the Canadian “Freedom Rally” trucker convoy.2 And WePay, a payment processor subsidiary of JPMorgan Chase—the largest bank in the United States—refused to do business with Missouri conservatives seeking to host an event with Donald Trump, Jr. Your proposal to track firearm-related purchases further threatens Americans who are simply exercising their constitutional rights.

In spite of the pushback, Brown seems confident that the MCC will move toward implementation. 

“What I’m hearing from other banks is that they have been honoring this process and this system, filing Suspicious Activity Reports across a myriad of industries to stop a myriad of crimes, or at least alert authorities of them,” she said. “And I have every confidence that banks are going to do the same thing here.”

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  • Ron December 15, 2022, 12:23 pm

    IF ALL OF YOU THINK THIS IS BAD READ WHAT BIDEN HAS DONE TO US. ENTER ( HR # 14067) ON YOUR COMPUTOR AND READ IT. YOU WON’T BE ABLE TO BUY GUNS OR AMMO ONCE THIS GOES INTO AFFECT. THEY WILL CONTROL WHAT YOU SPEND AND WHAT YOU SPEND IT ON. YOU WANT TO KEEP YOUR GAS OR DIESEL CAR OR TRUCK ….. WRONG THWILL FORCE TO BUY AND ELECTRIC ONE. YOU THINK NOT, WELL YOU WON’T BE ABLE TO BUY THE FUEL TO RUN IT. THEY WILL SHUT YOUR ACCESS TO DO SO. THEY WILL BE WATCHING EVERYTHING YOU SPEND YOUR MONEY ON AND FOLLOW YOU WHEREVER YOU GO.

  • Bob December 10, 2022, 3:30 pm

    Most crimes are from stolen or black market firearms. We the honest people suffer for this. I have owned firearms for 50 years. There are good and bad people in the world. That will never change. I have no problem waiting a couple days for a firearm….

  • Robert E Lee December 9, 2022, 6:40 pm

    You can use cash until July, 2023 and then we are all going to digital money provided by the gov’t. That’s the plan anyhow… after that you will get a social credit score just like China. Don’t like it? Your bank account is now at zero and forget tracking your purchase… they can decide you really don’t need it. Want a hill to die on? Wait for this one…

    • Ron December 15, 2022, 12:53 pm

      EVERY STATE SHOULD START A PETITION AGAINST OUR FEDERAL GOVERNMENT TO STOP THE PROCESS OF DIGITAL COIN. IT WILL CAUSE SO MANY PROBLEMS WITH PEOPLE THAT DON’T HAVE MUCH AND LIVE CHECK TO CHECK. LETS NOT FORGET THE HOMELESS THAT DON’T HAVE ANYTHING AND TRY TO LIVE BY COLLECTING CANS AND BOTTLES FOR RECYCLE. I’VE SEEN IT AND REALLY WORRY ABOUT WHAT WILL HAPPEN TO THEM. OUR GOVERNMENT IS ONLY THINKING ABOUT THEMSELVES AND THEIR PAYCHECK. IT’S SAD THAT OUR OWN GOVERNMENT DOESN’T CARE IF WE LIVE OR DIE. JUST CONTROL OUR GUNS . I WISH THEY WOULD GET OFF THE SUBJECT, THAT HORSE IS DEAD AND GONE.

  • Robert December 9, 2022, 6:31 pm

    A few days ago, tried to buy little gun part with AmEx card. Refused. Tried another AmEx card. Refused. Debit card worked fine.

  • Armed and Dangerous December 9, 2022, 3:36 pm

    I heard about this a couple of months ago. I immediately applied for a Discover card for my personal credit card. So far, Discover has not joined Visa, MC, or American Express (yet). The only problem is, I’m an FFL and Discover does not offer a business card at this time. I encourage all of you who use Visa, MC or American Express to switch to Discover. Money talks and bullshit walks.

  • MIKE OKELLY December 9, 2022, 2:14 pm

    this is pure bullshit, where is the 2nd amendment protection for the people

  • Steve December 9, 2022, 12:43 pm

    IF I had to use a credit card to purchase a new gun…I’d eat the extra fees, and just draw cash from the card at one or more ATMs. Screw them!

  • Mike December 9, 2022, 12:11 pm

    “Your comment is awaiting moderation.” There you go – censorship is alive and well at GA.

  • Mike December 9, 2022, 12:09 pm

    Hey Gunsamerica – why not stop reporting this? All it does is scare prospective customers away from buying LEGALLY at a gun shop with their credit card.

    As to the credit card companies – stop being Barney Fife. Let the ATF and the rest of law enforcement handle their own work. Going after gun dealers won’t solve anything and the crooks just laugh behind your back. How do I know? I’m a licensed dealer and I’m tired of getting the shaft from the ATF, banks, and credit card companies. It doesn’t work and they never use the methods that are effective. BTW, they don’t actually prosecute the criminals and I know it from experience. It’s all a way to control sales for law abiding citizens.

  • Eric Stevenson December 9, 2022, 12:02 pm

    I haven’t seen anything that says whether it will also track your debit card purchases, I would hope that it does not include information from your personal banking transactions, but I need more clarity as to exactly what is being pushed down our throats. If it does track our banking transactions and not just credit cards than that is a serious overstep and violation of personal information. In truth, I don’t use credit cards for firearms purchases since a few of the major card companies started prevented these transactions. Can you say government overreach?

    • Ron December 15, 2022, 12:35 pm

      DOESN’T YOUR DEBT CARD SAY VISA OR MASTER CARD IN THE CORNER. WELL THERE YOU GOES IT WAS REPORTED. EVEN THOUGH IT CAME OUT OF YOUR ACCOUNT, VISA DID THE TRANSACTION. DON’T WORRY YOU WONT HAVE A BANK ACCOUNT OR SAVINGS SOON. BIDEN IS TAKING CARE OF THAT FOR YOU. ON YOUR COMPUTOR TYPE IN BILL HR # 14067 AND READ WHAT HE HAS DONE FOR YOU. NO MORE GUNS OR AMMO OR A KNIFE EVEN. HE WANT YOU AND EVERYONE ELSE ON A LEASH.

  • LJ December 9, 2022, 10:03 am

    There are alternative methods to pay – use them!

  • Abby Normal December 9, 2022, 9:59 am

    Ok then. Cash, gold, silver it is then.

    • Ron December 13, 2022, 3:21 am

      All right Abby. I’VE BEEN WAITING FOR SOMEONE TO SAY THE MAGIC WORDS. GOLD,SILVER,PLATINUM. CAN’T USE CASH IN 2023,YOU WILL HAVE THE DIGITAL DOLLAR WHICH THE GOVERNMENT IN 2023 WILL HAVE THE (DIGITAL DOLLARS) WHICH CONTROLS YOUR PENDING.YOU WANT A GUN OR AMMO , NOPE THE GOVERNMENT WILL WILL SAY NOPE YOU DON’T NEED IT. IT WILL TRACK EVERYTHING YOU BUY. IF THEY LIKE WHAT YOUR BUYING THEY WILL TURN YOUR ACCOUNT OFF.DIAMONDS WILL EVEN WORK THEY HAVE VALUE AND CAN TRADE FOR WHATEVER YOU WANT.

  • st crispin December 9, 2022, 8:21 am

    Globalist industry doing the dirty work that out semi-Constitutional government overlords can’t (yet) get away with.

  • CountryBoy December 9, 2022, 8:08 am

    If this goes through, I will have my customers pay by cash or check. And if checking account transactions are included, then I will require them to pay in cash in order to protect THEIR privacy.

    • dave danger December 9, 2022, 12:18 pm

      They’ve already thought of that. Why do you think they are so anxious to go completely digital eliminating cash?

  • Douglas Davis December 9, 2022, 7:30 am

    Why are there people that still believe that by regulating guns in anyway will remove guns from the criminal?
    Keep giving away our rights and someday something you care about will be removed. Tracking with a credit card OM Gosh!
    This presentation was so obviously slanted.

    • Ron December 15, 2022, 12:41 pm

      HISTORY WILL REPEAT ITSELF. 1862 – 1865

  • Chuck Matson December 9, 2022, 6:47 am

    And watch what happens when they eventually push digital currency up our asses.

  • SuperG December 6, 2022, 9:15 am

    Just another way for the founders of the KKK, the Democrats, to keep the black man disarmed.

  • survivor50 December 5, 2022, 8:39 pm

    ” Big Banks, Credit Card Companies on Track to Monitor, Flag Gun Purchases… ”

    I always use cash … none of the banks business… credit cards are for ordering CHEAP CHINESE SCHIFF on Amazon … and taking the wife out to dinner… according to her…

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