From ... in Information Technology Surveillance Censorship Political Scandal Research History Conspiracy — Apr 10, 2025

BadBanki: Censorship through Frozen Assets in Iceland

We are witnessing an age where free speech is becoming increasingly endangered, and voicing an opinion might not just cost you social media attacks, but outright financial loss. Now more than ever, the world is urgently in need of ethical software alternatives that prioritise and respect users, treating them as customers rather than products. When people think of Meta, X, and other social media giants, they recognise a pervasive disregard for users, where data mining and tracking have become the currency of our time. With the age of AI, cameras everywhere, and the threat of something like Elon Musk’s Neuralink coming to a brain near you, privacy has gone out the window, and your data has become the price you pay every time you use the internet.

Wanting to address some of these problems, in 2021, a group of independent software developers and former activists united with a vision to create a safer internet amidst mass surveillance and censorship. They introduced Panquake, a concept aimed at rebalancing power between social media users and platforms, fostering an environment where communication occurs without profiling or exploitation by AI, advertisers, and Big Data. This revolutionary platform would be free of tracking, free of mass surveillance, and free of the prisons that most social media platforms and developers were building, bringing ethics and human understanding to Big Tech like never before.

These ideas garnered enthusiastic support from thousands of grassroots advocates who contributed their time, energy, and donations to bring this vision to life. Panquake led to the development of a full-size, privacy-focused international development house called Talk Liberation. Unfortunately, the organisation has since encountered significant systemic opposition from established entities, including challenges from the financial sector.

In 2022, Talk Liberation’s Icelandic banking partner Islandsbanki, or “BadBanki” as they playfully call it, froze Panquake’s seed funding without any notice, invoking money laundering and anti-terrorism legislation as its initial reason. The bank ignored Talk Liberation's solid financial standing and dismissed their proactive and thorough compliance efforts, including numerous emails notifying the bank about the funds, requests for the appointment of a business banking manager, and attempts to engage in dialogue. Instead of working with Talk Liberation, Islandsbanki terminated its banking services, closing the organisation’s accounts and withholding funding for nine months. Although Islandsbanki ultimately unfroze and returned the funds, effectively clearing Talk Liberation of any wrongdoing, they failed to provide any apology or compensation for the significant harm caused by their actions to both the company and the community.

According to a 28 March 2025 press release, “Talk Liberation instructed lawyers to prepare suit to hold Islandsbanki to account” in March 2023. In Iceland, Talk Liberation is represented by the same winning Icelandic legal team as WikiLeaks, which famously secured a USD $10 million settlement against a payment processor acting for Visa and Mastercard. Talk Liberation is seeking compensation for damage caused to its operations by Islandsbanki's flawed processes, unjustly withholding their seed funding and terminating their banking services. The press release also stated, “Working behind the scenes for the last few years, Talk Liberation has progressed the case through a series of preliminary hearings, now culminating in case hearings that will be taking place this year, and will obtain an initial judgment in what may be a longer fight”.

Despite all of this, Talk Liberation was able to quickly pivot, and managed to release other derivative products or “pieces of the Panquake pie“, and while Panquake is very much alive and thriving, the damage caused by Islandsbanki’s actions unnecessarily punished Panquake's loyal donors and community. The bank's motives remain unclear, but Talk Liberation is resolute in uncovering the truth. Regardless of intent, the procedures followed by the bank were inherently unjust and flawed. For this reason, should the bank’s actions be found to have political motivations similar to those seen in the WikiLeaks case, it could have serious implications for both the lawsuit's outcome and for the bank itself.

Sveinn Andrew Sveinsson, the Icelandic supreme court attorney working on the case said, “This case exemplifies how the banking system can suppress free speech and journalism”. At a recent preliminary hearing on 5 March, Sveinsson stated, according to the press release:

Talk Liberation notified the bank of the existence of the funds and everything was done by the book, the due diligence was OK. But it seems to me they looked into the main shareholder Suzie Dawson and realised she was in a sense persona non grata in her home country of New Zealand as she has been vocal in fighting for freedom of speech. And as you know for example, with WikiLeaks, this method has been used before, when the bankers gave the order to the card and the banking system to close down payments sent to WikiLeaks. This is just the same method. My opinion is that Islandsbanki is just obeying orders that are coming from the international banking system.

Talk Liberation and Panquake Founder Suzie Dawson is an internationally recognised former activist, organiser, and journalist who was involved in a series of large-scale social campaigns as well as journalism projects. She has studied Snowden files live online, publishing unique findings, and she founded the Unity4J movement advocating for Julian Assange's freedom while educating people about state surveillance, privacy abuses, and human rights. She was the Leader of the Internet Party of New Zealand and stood in the 2017 New Zealand General Election, campaigning on privacy, anti-war, and socioeconomic issues. Her work has been frequently shared by WikiLeaks and other prominent accounts. Dawson said in the press release:

We aim to achieve justice for everyone who supports the Panquake campaign. The bank's processes were disproportionate, abusive and lacked transparency. Islandsbanki made a number of easily disprovable and unfounded claims in an attempt to justify its withholding of our funds and closing of our accounts. It would be disappointing to discover that these were merely a cover masking a hidden motive of political persecution. One way or the other, we intend to get to the bottom of this for everyone's benefit and that is precisely what this lawsuit is about

Talk Liberation faced reputational and financial harm due to Islandsbanki’s actions, leading some community members to experience fear, uncertainty, and doubt regarding the project's future. The WikiLeaks case revealed abuses of power in the financial sector and highlighted hidden political biases within banking systems. Today, the BadBanki case signifies a troubling trend where disruptive innovations are suppressed by financial institutions. Without resistance, innovation risks being undermined or halted by those wielding power with ulterior motives. "This battle transcends one organisation; it embodies principles that impact everyone who values digital rights and equitable treatment from financial entities", stated Dawson.

Financial institutions, whether banks or other types, targeting customers based on their political beliefs and opinions has long been happening, no matter what side of the aisle they fall into. "De-banking" is the abrupt or involuntary loss of access to traditional banking services, often due to perceived financial, regulatory, or reputational risks associated with specific clients or industries. This phenomenon can severely impact individuals and businesses by restricting access to essential financial services such as loans, savings accounts, and payment processing. Gaining global attention particularly in high-risk sectors, de-banking has prompted discussions about fairness, financial inclusion, and banks' ethical responsibilities.

Back in 2016, PayPal, a global leader in online payment services, cut off payments to the anti-Israel group BDS France. In 2020, Canadian authorities froze the finances of individuals and companies linked to ongoing protests in Ottawa, against Covid vaccine mandates. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) froze 206 financial products, including bank and corporate accounts, disclosed information on 56 entities tied to vehicles, individuals, and businesses, shared 253 Bitcoin addresses with cryptocurrency exchanges, and froze a payment processing account valued at $3.8 million.

More recently, a German bank froze the account of the anti-Zionist group Jewish Voice for a Just Peace in the Middle East, requesting a list of its members and their addresses. The association reported that Berliner Sparkasse blocked its account without prior notice while updating customer information. In a letter to the board, the bank described the action as "precautionary" and demanded various documents, including member names and addresses, by 5 April. In a similar sense to what Talk Liberation lawyers mentioned regarding the BadBanki case, the association challenged the bank's authority to freeze accounts without justification, noting that such requests are reminiscent of inquiries from intelligence agencies or police exerting political pressure on them. They alleged that their account had previously been closed in 2019 due to pressure from Germany’s Central Council of Jews. The organization emphasised rising political persecution amid waning global support for Israel's actions in the West Bank and Gaza. Also, similarly to Talk Liberation, despite facing potential financial loss, the organisation remains resolute, asserting that their opposition to genocide is rooted in Jewish values rather than reliant on funding and their membership continues to grow. The group is currently pursuing legal action against what it deems an arbitrary and politically motivated account freeze, calling it "unacceptable in a democracy”.

In the US, banks and their regulators are examining claims that they deny services to particular industries or political groups. In February, the Senate Banking Committee held a hearing on de-banking, with testimony from subject matter experts and business owners who claim they were unfairly denied access to banking products. The banking industry has fiercely resisted accusations that it denies services based on ideological reasons, arguing that outdated and opaque rules make it difficult for banks to sometimes provide services, or explain why they cannot.

All of these cases and many more others not mentioned signal that no matter what someone’s political belief, financial institutions be they banks or companies like PayPal, targeting them based on political bias, is wrong and should not occur, as financial attacks are set to stop or undermine people or organizations.

Back in Iceland, on 3 April, the court in the Talk Liberation vs Islandsbanki case notified participants that the hearing was postponed due to the judge being ill. While the BadBanki campaign is ongoing and may be a long battle, it reveals a David vs Goliath story where many are fighting back against a pervasive abuse of power. If not for those taking on such powerful forces, these cases might remind hidden in the shadows. Talk Liberation has asked those who’ve experienced similar unfair treatment by a financial institution to share their story anonymously here and keep up with the latest and join the fight. This issue affects many people with varied organizations and career paths, and the people deserve to have their stories told, and their day in court.

After all, justice delayed is justice denied.

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BadBanki: Censorship through Frozen Assets in Iceland

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