According to my informations this won’t last forever. If Stripe is available in your country, you’re forced to switch to Stripe. Personally I just have set up a Bandcamp business account 5 months ago only to be able to set up an artist account on Bandcamp. If I’m forced to switch to Stripe, I can delete my useless PayPal business account and have to deal with the conditions of Stripe, which seem to be more business related. As a hobby musician who doesn’t expect to receive many payments, I don’t want to grow a business, but in order to set up a Stripe account I might need to register a business first, which would be pretty conflicting. So at the moment I rather tend to delete my Bandcamp account than registering a business officially and setting up a Stripe account. Or do you have other informations than I? Even on Bandcamp there’s a description of how to set up a Stripe account. It seems to be a done deal.
This is what Espen Kraft has to say about the situation:
Bandcamp has framed the move as a way to create a “more flexible and modern payment system that better meets the needs of artists and labels globally” and to “help artists increase their sales… and expand the artists who can use Bandcamp globally.”
While Bandcamp highlights positive goals, other reasons cited by industry observers and artists include:
Lower Payout Fees (for Bandcamp): It’s speculated that relying on a single, modern payment provider like Stripe streamlines their internal operations and may lower the overall payment processing costs Bandcamp incurs, especially for bank transfers. Stripe also offers features like free payouts to bank accounts in supported regions (though foreign exchange fees may still apply).
Addressing PayPal Issues: Many artists had complaints about PayPal’s fees, lack of fee transparency, and issues with accounts being frozen or difficult transfers to bank accounts, especially in certain regions.
Expanded Buyer Options: The switch to Stripe allows Bandcamp to more easily offer popular digital wallet payment options for buyers, such as Apple Pay and Google Pay, which can improve conversion rates for sales.
Regarding Political Motives
There is no official information or widespread credible reporting that the move away from PayPal is due to political motives or disputes between Bandcamp and PayPal. The reasons appear to be centered on operational, financial, and logistical improvements to the payment system for the platform and its users.
However, the decision has become a source of controversy because:
The communication from Bandcamp about the change was initially perceived as poor and “clandestine” by some artists.
The number of countries supported by Stripe is currently fewer than the countries where PayPal had offered some level of support, leading to major concern among artists in unsupported regions who fear being cut off from sales.“
Why the Change?