FTC asks court to hold payment processors in contempt over alleged 2015-order violations

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litigation

FTC filed a motion in federal court asking the court to hold the named payment processors in contempt for violating the agency's 2015 order.

Source summary
The Federal Trade Commission has asked a federal court to hold operators of a payment processing operation in contempt for allegedly systematically violating a 2015 FTC order that addressed illegal credit card payment processing. The agency is seeking at least $52.9 million in relief for consumers and names Cliq, Andrew Phillips, and John Blaugrund in the action. The request was announced in an FTC press release with a link to the full statement.
Latest fact check

An official FTC press release dated January 13, 2026 states that "The Federal Trade Commission has asked a federal court to hold the operators of a payment processing operation in contempt for systematically violating their 2015 order with the agency over allegations they illegally processed credit card payments," and notes this was done "in a motion filed in federal court." The release identifies the operation as Cliq, Inc. (formerly CardFlex, Inc.) and its executives, and describes the alleged violations of a stipulated final order entered in 2015. A 2015 FTC press release confirms that CardFlex, Andrew Phillips, and John Blaugrund were subject to a stipulated final order that restricted their payment processing activities, which is the order the FTC now alleges they violated. Verdict: True, because the FTC’s own contemporaneous documentation confirms it filed a court motion asking a federal court to hold the operators of a payment processing operation in contempt for allegedly violating a 2015 FTC order.

Timeline

  1. Update · Jan 13, 2026, 10:56 PMTrue
    An official FTC press release dated January 13, 2026 states that "The Federal Trade Commission has asked a federal court to hold the operators of a payment processing operation in contempt for systematically violating their 2015 order with the agency over allegations they illegally processed credit card payments," and notes this was done "in a motion filed in federal court." The release identifies the operation as Cliq, Inc. (formerly CardFlex, Inc.) and its executives, and describes the alleged violations of a stipulated final order entered in 2015. A 2015 FTC press release confirms that CardFlex, Andrew Phillips, and John Blaugrund were subject to a stipulated final order that restricted their payment processing activities, which is the order the FTC now alleges they violated. Verdict: True, because the FTC’s own contemporaneous documentation confirms it filed a court motion asking a federal court to hold the operators of a payment processing operation in contempt for allegedly violating a 2015 FTC order.
  2. Original article · Jan 13, 2026

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