Solving Payment Challenges in the Creator Economy
Introduction
The creator economy is booming, with platforms like OnlyFans, Fansly, Patreon, Substack, and TSFans allowing millions of creators to earn directly from their fans. Whether you are running a subscription newsletter, creating adult content, or producing exclusive videos, monetization platforms have made it easier than ever to turn audiences into income.
However, creator platform payment challenges remain a significant obstacle. Issues like high-risk payment processing, delayed payouts, and sudden payment processor changes can disrupt income for both creators and platforms. In this article, we examine the strengths and weaknesses of popular content monetization platforms, the common payment processing challenges they face, and how secure payouts for creators can be achieved with the right solutions.
OnlyFans Approaching 8 Billion Dollar Valuation Shows Market Scale
OnlyFans is reportedly in talks for a sale at around 8 billion dollars, according to Reuters. This potential sale demonstrates that the creator economy has moved well beyond niche markets and is now attracting major institutional interest.
The creator economy is not just niche, it is massive and growing fast. As of 2025, the market is estimated at 191 billion dollars, with forecasts showing it could surpass 528 billion dollars by 2030, reflecting a 22.5 percent compound annual growth rate (CAGR) (Demandsage). Meanwhile, 67 million people identified as global content creators in 2025, a number projected to grow to 107 million by 2030. Goldman Sachs forecasts that the economy could be valued at 480 billion dollars by 2027, underscoring its rapid rise and the scale of opportunity for creators and platforms worldwide.
Platform Overview
OnlyFans Payment Issues and Strengths
OnlyFans dominates the adult content subscription market, offering creators flexibility through subscriptions, tips, and pay-per-view sales. This monetization versatility has made it a global leader in fan-based income.
Yet, many creators encounter payout delays, sudden policy changes, and account freezes. OnlyFans operates in the high-risk payment processing category, which means it depends on a limited number of acquiring banks and processors. When one of these partners changes policy or increases restrictions, creators face delayed or rejected payments. Banking stigma around adult content adds to this instability, making secure payouts an ongoing concern.
Fansly Payment Processing and Growth Potential
Fansly is often viewed as a more permissive alternative to OnlyFans, attracting creators who were rejected from or left that platform. It offers similar monetization tools, including subscriptions, tips, and custom content requests.
However, its smaller audience base limits earning potential, and it faces similar payment processor challenges. Like other high-risk platforms, Fansly experiences bottlenecks in transaction approvals and struggles with stable long-term acquiring relationships, which can result in payout delays and lower approval rates.
Patreon Payout Problems in a Mainstream Market
Patreon has built a strong reputation among mainstream creatives such as musicians, podcasters, educators, and visual artists. It benefits from stable banking relationships and a track record of consistent payouts.
The drawback is its strict content moderation and refusal to work with most adult or borderline content creators. Creators in these categories often find themselves removed from the platform without warning, losing their subscriber base and income in the process. This exclusion forces many to seek high-risk payment processing solutions outside of mainstream providers.
Substack Monetization and Limitations
Substack has become a go-to platform for writers, journalists, and thought leaders. Its integrated newsletter subscription model makes it easy to grow and monetize an audience directly.
Despite this, Substack offers limited monetization beyond subscriptions. It is not equipped to support high-risk or adult-adjacent creators, and its payment systems are optimized for lower-risk, mainstream markets. This leaves certain creator niches without the flexibility they need.
The Smaller Players and Niche Platforms
Ko-fi is popular for micro-support payments, with creators receiving small donations in a simple “buy me a coffee” format. However, it lacks robust recurring payment features and offers fewer supported payment methods compared to larger platforms.
FanCentro and ManyVids cater to niche adult content communities with loyal followings. Yet, both face ongoing payment instability due to their dependence on a small number of high-risk processors, making them vulnerable to sudden service interruptions.
TSFans.com focuses on transgender and transsexual content creators, providing an inclusive and supportive space. While it fills an important market gap, TSFans faces the same challenges as other adult platforms, including acquirer hesitancy, higher chargeback ratios, and payout delays.
Gumroad provides flexible tools for selling digital products and subscriptions but takes a cautious stance toward high-risk content, sometimes resulting in sudden account freezes for adult creators.
SubscribeStar attracts creators who have been removed from other platforms for political or artistic reasons. However, its smaller acquirer network and niche audience mean payout reliability can be unpredictable.
Platform Payment Comparison Table
| Platform | Content Focus | Monetization Methods | Payment Strengths | Payment Weaknesses | Risk Category |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| OnlyFans | Adult content | Subscriptions, tips, PPV | High earning potential, global reach | Limited acquirers, stigma, policy volatility | High-risk |
| Fansly | Adult and borderline | Subscriptions, tips, custom | More lenient than mainstream, growing creator base | Smaller audience, same high-risk challenges | High-risk |
| Patreon | Mainstream creative | Subscriptions, memberships | Strong banking ties, stable payouts | Strict moderation, excludes adult content | Low-to-medium risk |
| Substack | Writers, journalists | Subscriptions | Easy audience building, integrated tools | Narrow monetization, not high-risk friendly | Low risk |
| TSFans.com | Transgender content | Subscriptions, PPV, tips | Inclusive niche, loyal audience | Payment stigma, higher chargebacks | High-risk |
| Ko-fi | All creators | Donations, small tips | Simple, low barrier to entry | Limited recurring payments | Low risk |
| FanCentro / ManyVids | Adult content | Subscriptions, PPV, tips | Niche-focused features | Payment instability, processor dependency | High-risk |
| Gumroad | Digital goods | One-off sales, subscriptions | Flexible product types | Restrictive toward high-risk | Medium risk |
| SubscribeStar | Alternative speech & art | Subscriptions | Platform for removed creators | Small acquirer pool, niche market | Medium-to-high risk |
Shared Creator Platform Payment Challenges
Across mainstream and adult content platforms, the payment challenges are remarkably similar. Many depend on just one or two acquiring banks or processors, which creates vulnerability to policy changes or account terminations.
High-risk industries, including adult content and politically sensitive creators, often face payment processor bans or higher transaction scrutiny. Subscription-based platforms experience higher rates of chargebacks and friendly fraud, averaging 1.85 percent, which is well above the 1 percent threshold where payment networks begin to classify merchants as high-risk (Chargeblast).
Compliance is another hurdle. KYC, AML, and age verification requirements differ by country, making global payment processing a complex and costly task. Creators who rely solely on a single platform risk losing all income overnight if payments are blocked or accounts are closed.
“At FastoPayments we will and we have worked with many content creators and platforms and have seen ways of where to improve and how to stay out of your own way. Which means less issues with acquirers, less problems with pay-outs, and less friction which increases growth.” — Dennis Pedersen, CEO & Founder of FastoPayments
Real-World Scenario: The Processing Freeze That Stopped Payouts
In 2023, a mid-sized adult content platform suddenly lost its primary acquiring bank after a compliance review. With only one processor in place, all transactions were blocked, and creators went two weeks without payouts. Subscriber churn spiked as fans lost trust, and the platform’s reputation suffered overnight.
Had the platform been using a multi-acquirer gateway with FastoPayments, transactions could have been instantly rerouted through another acquiring bank, avoiding downtime and keeping creators paid without interruption.
FastoPayments: Solutions for High-Risk Creators and Platforms
FastoPayments provides high-risk payment processing designed for both adult and mainstream content platforms. Our multi-acquirer payment gateway routes transactions through the best available acquiring bank, improving approval rates and reducing downtime.
We offer mass payouts for content creators in local currencies and stablecoins, ensuring global reach with faster delivery times. Advanced fraud prevention tools detect and block risky transactions before they result in chargebacks, protecting merchant accounts from closure.
Our platform supports multiple monetization models including subscriptions, pay-per-view, tipping, and hybrid pricing, making it flexible enough for creators and platforms of all sizes.
The Future of Creator Economy Payments
The future will favor creators and platforms that diversify their payment methods and acquirer relationships. Trends such as decentralized payments, crypto adoption, and direct-to-fan monetization will continue to grow.
Regulatory compliance will remain critical. Platforms that embed strong, compliant payment systems from day one will have a competitive edge, especially in high-risk sectors.
Take-away from this article
From OnlyFans payment issues to Patreon payout problems, and from Fansly’s growth challenges to TSFans.com’s high-risk processing needs, every content platform faces the same underlying risk: payment instability.
The creators and platforms that succeed will be those that combine audience growth with stable payment infrastructure, strong compliance, and flexible monetization options. FastoPayments bridges this gap, providing reliable payment solutions for both high-risk and mainstream creators.
What are the biggest payment challenges for creator platforms?
Creator platforms often rely on just one or two acquiring banks. This makes them vulnerable to policy changes or sudden account terminations, which can freeze payouts instantly.
In high-risk sectors like adult content or politically sensitive media, chargeback rates average 1.85 percent, which is nearly double the 1 percent threshold where payment networks begin to classify merchants as high-risk.
Without diversification, creators can lose all their income overnight.
How can creators and platforms ensure secure payouts?
The most reliable approach is to work with multiple acquiring banks and use a payment gateway that automatically routes transactions to the best available partner.
Mass payout systems that support multiple currencies and geographies further reduce delays and failures.
FastoPayments uses this multi-acquirer approach, ensuring creators get paid on time and in full, even when one processor faces downtime.
Why is high-risk payment processing important for the creator economy?
High-risk payment processing protects industries that banks often avoid such as adult content, subscription services, politically sensitive media, and high-volume e-commerce.
Without it, platforms risk frozen accounts, rejected transactions, and lost subscriber trust. For creators, this can mean losing years of audience growth in a matter of days.
With the right high-risk solution, creators keep their payouts flowing and their businesses growing.
💡 Interested in learning more about what’s included in a typical high-risk merchant account? View our complete breakdown of FastoPayments’s high-risk merchant accounts.
