NEWS
No end in sight for PayPal
CBD account freezes
CBD IS STILL CONSIDERED A NARCOTIC DESPITE
THE FDA APPROVAL OF A CBD MEDICINE
By Gordon Stribling
Hopes that PayPal would lift their ban on CBD
sales were dashed after the US Drug Enforcement
Agency (DEA) refused to reclassify it as a Schedule
5 substance.
Due to its Schedule 1 status, PayPal considers
CBD itself to be a narcotic. Narcotics are prohibited
under the company’s user agreement.
In September, PayPal closed E-Liquid Brands UK’s
account and froze their funds without explanation.
The company refused to reinstate the account
even after E-Liquid Brands had removed the CBD
products from their website.
Managing director and UKVIA spokesperson, John
Dunne, said: “They just told me that the[y] viewed
CBD as illegal and it violated their terms and
conditions. They said they would hold all funds up
to 180 days even though we had not sold a single
bottle through PayPal. They are still holding almost
£2,500 of my money. My company is, for all intents
and purposes, banned from PayPal.”
Made in the UK, Epidiolex is the only FDA-approved
CBD medication on the market.
The Schedule 1 classification places CBD alongside
heroin and MDMA (ecstasy) as drugs with the highest
abuse potential and the lowest medicinal value.
FDA Commissioner and vape industry adversary
Scott Gottlieb said in a press release:
“[Epidiolex] was approved to treat seizures associated
with two rare, severe forms of epilepsy in patients
two years of age and older.
“But it’s also important to note that this is not an
approval of marijuana or all of its components. This
is the approval of one specific CBD medication for
a specific use.”
Critics have noted that health food giant Holland
& Barrett has not faced sanctions for selling their
hugely-popular CBD products.
PayPal is not the only payment platform to refuse
to work with the industry. Both Stripe and Apple Pay
prohibit the sale of e-cigarettes in their terms of service.
“They are still holding almost £2,500 of my money.
My company is, for all intents and purposes, banned from PayPal”
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