In July, OnlyFans creator Lily Phillips told her 481,000 TikTok followers that her business bank account had been closed without warning. “It was purely because they didn’t like my job,” she said — and the response from other creators made clear she wasn’t describing an isolated incident. Banks shutting the accounts of legally operating adult content creators, a practice known as debanking, has been a quiet but persistent problem across the UK creator economy. New rules that took effect this year are supposed to change how it happens. They don’t stop it happening at all.
Why banks close these accounts in the first place
Adult content creators are routinely classified by banks as “high-risk” customers, a label usually applied because of anti-money-laundering and fraud concerns rather than anything about the individual account holder. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) itself has acknowledged the problem is bigger than a few edge cases: back in 2024 it warned that blanket account denials cause “significant harm” to sex workers, many of whom rely on ordinary banking access to pay rent, receive income and manage basic household bills like anyone else running a small business.
What actually changed in 2026
Under new FCA-driven rules that came into force for banking contracts from April 2026, banks are now required to give customers 90 days’ notice before closing an account, along with a clear, specific explanation for the closure. That’s a meaningful improvement on being locked out with no warning. It’s also not a fix. An FCA spokesperson put it plainly: “Blanket policies that unfairly exclude certain customers are unlikely to meet the standards we expect” — but the rules stop short of banning banks from closing accounts over the nature of legal adult work altogether. Ninety days’ notice softens the landing. It doesn’t stop the fall.
What debanking actually costs creators
- Direct debits for rent, mortgages and utilities can bounce the moment an account closes, triggering late fees and credit-file damage that has nothing to do with the creator’s actual financial reliability.
- Some creators have also lost linked payment accounts, including PayPal balances, frozen mid-dispute with no clear timeline for release.
- Reopening banking relationships elsewhere is harder than it sounds — a closure on file can follow a creator to the next application, even at a different institution.
What to actually do if you’re worried this could happen to you
- Don’t rely on a single account for both personal and business income — spreading funds across more than one institution limits how much is frozen at once if a closure happens.
- Keep clear, dated records of your income and business structure; if you formalised via an LLC or similar entity, as we’ve covered here, that paperwork can help when reapplying elsewhere.
- If you’re given notice of a closure, use the 90-day window immediately to open a replacement account rather than waiting — some challenger banks and specialist providers are markedly more willing to work with creator-economy income than the high street names.
- If a closure happens with no explanation or without the required notice, you can complain directly to the bank and, if unresolved, escalate to the Financial Ombudsman Service.
UK creators already navigating agency relationships have raised similar concerns about being treated as disposable rather than as small business owners — our coverage of the BBC investigation into UK OnlyFans agencies covers some of that same power imbalance from a different angle. Banking access shouldn’t be a second front in that fight, but for now, it often is.
This article is provided for general information and is not financial or legal advice. If your account has been closed or restricted, consider speaking to a solicitor, an accountant, or the Financial Ombudsman Service about your specific situation.
