This is something I feel strongly about.<p>At my company, we have spent the better part of the past month fighting the credit card system, but not by encouraging merchants to use it as FeeFighters does. We built a new processing network from the ground up (<a href="https://www.facecash.com" rel="nofollow">https://www.facecash.com</a>) that costs far less per transaction than the standard interchange--and then lobbyists for Western Union, American Express and others changed the law in California to make it virtually impossible to get a money transmission license without $2 million in funding for the California requirements alone. At least well-funded one payments startup shut down in April, several are now risking criminal prosecution by not complying with the law, and only one so far has been able to afford to apply for a license.<p>We can afford to apply, but because the DFI makes up the rules as it goes along, we are basically guaranteed not to get a license.<p>Consequently, I wrote this...<p><a href="http://www.quora.com/Aaron-Greenspan/In-Fifty-Days-Payments-Innovation-Will-Stop-In-Silicon-Valley" rel="nofollow">http://www.quora.com/Aaron-Greenspan/In-Fifty-Days-Payments-...</a><p>...and this...<p><a href="http://www.quora.com/Aaron-Greenspan/In-Thirty-Days-Payments-Innovation-Will-Stop-In-Silicon-Valley" rel="nofollow">http://www.quora.com/Aaron-Greenspan/In-Thirty-Days-Payments...</a><p>...and this...<p><a href="http://www.quora.com/Aaron-Greenspan/Why-Im-Furious-with-Silicon-Valley" rel="nofollow">http://www.quora.com/Aaron-Greenspan/Why-Im-Furious-with-Sil...</a><p>...and this...<p><a href="http://www.quora.com/Aaron-Greenspan/The-California-Law-That-Should-Send-The-President-and-Fellows-of-Harvard-College-and-Every-Private-University-To" rel="nofollow">http://www.quora.com/Aaron-Greenspan/The-California-Law-That...</a><p>I've been in touch with multiple California Assemblymen, the chief consultant to the California Banking and Finance Committee, the staff director of the California State Senate, two people at the U.S. Treasury, and one person at the newly-formed Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.<p>They want to hear from you. If you're interested in voicing your opinion, send me an e-mail (aarong at thinkcomputer dot com) and I'll get you in touch.<p>Disruptive change requires actually disrupting a system. That's what we've been doing, but as long as it's illegal, the banks will be able to hold the public's money hostage. Given the state of the global economy that is not okay with me anymore.
Isn't it fitting that the comments on a post that's just about plugging the poster's own startup are all just about plugging the commenter's own startup.
It is great to see all the new payment processing start-ups sprouting all around. It's definitely time for someone to give paypal and authorize.net a run for their money.<p>One of my apps, <a href="http://JungleBlaze.com" rel="nofollow">http://JungleBlaze.com</a>, tries to democratize selling downloads on the web and make it "as easy as sharing a link".