Please be advised that, at 12:00 PM PDT today, September 2, 2010, we were notified that effective immediately, Visa International has suspended our banking partner’s (St. Kitts Nevis Anguilla National Bank) ePassporte Visa program. The ePassporte e-Wallet program continues to be up and running, except funds cannot be transferred between your Visa Account and your e-Wallet. At this time ePassporte can no longer issue Visa Cards, and the ability for our Account Holders to make point of sale purchases and withdraw funds from ATMs has also been suspended.

At this time we do not know why this drastic action was taken by Visa. To us, it is unconscionable that such action would be taken without the opportunity for ePassporte to fully understand Visa’s reasons and to be able to take all steps necessary to keep our program running the way it has so successfully done for over 7 years. But that is what Visa has done.

The reason for this move from Visa is most likely because of the new rules enforced by Treasury Department's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN).

New rules has come in place regarding debit pre paid cards, gift cards and reloadable top up cards. The rules, which were mandated by the Credit CARD Act of 2009, require more data collection and reporting from businesses, and some experts say they could make prepaid card buying a challenge for some consumers.

Starting June 28, the public will have 30 days to comment on the rules, which require nonbank prepaid card providers to: