Japanese indie developer Mousou no Mayu has revealed that their bank is declining to process international transfers linked to the Steam release of their anime-style deckbuilding RPG Hustle Battle: Card Gamers, leaving them unable to access their rightful earnings.
Hustle Battle: Card Gamers is an R-rated title that initially launched on Japanese platforms such as DLsite and Fanza back in December 2024. The Steam version, featuring localization and an all-ages adaptation, arrived in March of this year via US publisher Kagura Games.
In a series of posts on X from May 12, developer Mousou no Mayu indicated they were expecting a payment from Kagura Games for Hustle Battle: Card Gamers earnings, but instead received a call from Daishi Hokuetsu Bank suggesting the transaction might be rejected. The developer inferred from the conversation that the bank’s hesitation was tied to the game’s content, as the bank appeared to be investigating and posed indirect questions like “is this revenue from a game featuring girls?”
The following day, Mousou no Mayu visited their bank and learned that international payments tied to the Steam version of Hustle Battle: Card Gamers would not be processed. The bank cited a “thorough review of the game’s content” as the basis for this decision. Despite the developer clarifying that the Steam release was the all-ages edition, the bank stood firm, claiming that “the characters appear to be minors” and thus the content was problematic.
Moreover, Mousou no Mayu was told that “depending on future decisions,” the bank might also refuse domestic transfers, which would affect revenue from DLsite and Fanza. “In short, they said they would no longer accept any international transfers, and since they’re giving me a one- to two-month grace period for domestic transfers, they want me to switch to a different account for deposits during that time,” they explained. Following advice from industry contacts, Mousou no Mayu has decided to explore switching banks for now, though this situation is part of a broader trend affecting other developers.
Just last month, Mai Itsuki of indie game circle Ren (which also publishes adult games) had all their overseas transactions blocked, drawing notice among peers. The bank referenced undisclosed “risks” as the cause, even though Ren’s games comply with legal standards. These incidents suggest that Japanese banks can unilaterally block developers’ income. Former Japanese assemblyman Zenko Kurishita has criticized this practice of “debanking” based on “flimsy reasoning,” proposing that Japan should adopt a similar approach to the “Guaranteeing Fair Banking For All Americans” order enacted in the US last year.
Mido