Plans by members of the Occupy Wall Street movement to bring out a prepaid debit card have provoked bitter argument within the group.

On 17 September, for Occupy’s second anniversary, a faction of the movement began to raise money to cover start-up operating expenses. The founders describe the scheme as providing "low-cost, transparent, high-quality financial services to the 99%."

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Carne Ross, a British ex-diplomat and member of the Occupy Money Co-operative said: "There is no profit here. The only revenue we want is to make the thing sustainable and eventually expand our range of services."

He added that there would be no upfront cost for the card, but fees will include $1.95 for A.T.M. withdrawals and 99 cents for balance inquiries. Once it has raised the $900k needed to cover start-up costs, the co-operative intends to make the card available to anyone who signs up via the website.

Some factions of the movement have lashed out against the card, claiming it goes against everything Occupy stands for.

Bill Dobbs, a member of Occupy, said: "Too much blood, sweat and tears have been going into Occupy to have that turned into a piece of plastic.

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"This is a very odd fit, and for the project’s sake and Occupy’s sake, they ought to go on separate paths."

Other organizers said that while they were not wholly against the project, the term "Occupy Card" implied it had the approval of the entire movement.

Occupy organizer Patrick Bruner said: "Occupy has always been a consensus-based movement. And there’s no consensus on this issue."

 

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