In Brussels, Julie (not her real name) owns a bar on rue d’Aerschot. She rents squares there to prostitutes. If for her, twenty years ago, opening a bank account was not complicated, for “her daughters”, as she calls them, the situation is not so simple. When asked to open a bank account, the answer is often no. The prostitution sector, like that of diamond dealers or arms manufacturers faces many hurdles in opening a bank account.
Indeed, with these sectors often associated with money laundering and terrorist financing, banks are reluctant to grant them a current account. Worse still, in some cases, the bank account exists but the bank decides to close it unilaterally, for fear that certain accounts will be used for money laundering purposes. This is called “de-risking”, reports l’Ombudsfinmediator in financial matters.
