Bank Account of European Leftist group by Yianis Varoufakis shut down

[alani123]

The international offshoot of Yianis Varoufakis' Greek political party, Diem25, got its bank account shut down, reportedly without explanation.

https://novaramedia.com/2026/11/03/leftwing-alliance-led-by-yanis-varoufakis-loses-access-to-bank-account/

The account was created with a Belgian bank where the organization has its headquarters and employs two permanent staffers. Now the organization's regular expenses like salaries are at risk of not being covered. Even though it seems like the organization was doing everything properly and "the legal way", having a registered official account and following tax policy, the bank declined to comment about the closure.

Diem25 is a vocal advocate against the genocide in Palestine and the EU's complicity among other things, like calling out the extensive influence of oligarchs in today's society.

I know many people here may not agree with their politics, (trust me, I'm not a fan either) but this is a very characteristic example on how one can't rely on banking if what they want to bring forth is real change.

FWIW, they do also accept cryptocurrency donations to cover the emergency expenses that will come after their account got frozen:
https://i.diem25.org/donations/to/debanking

Unfortunately can't be anonymous as per their own page.

[Questat]

When I read the word Leftist that means they are against the government or to be specific certain rules of the government. And banks are regulated by the government, so it's possible that the order is coming from the government to put some pressure on them, if they have not violated any rules particularly anti money laundering.

That's the reason why Bitcoin was born, self-custody is always the better solution when it comes to controlling our own money, as banks can be corrupt and can be used for political persecution if what happened could qualify as that.

[Aliciaworld]

This is the exact situation you can avoid through crypto currency, although with recent happening we've seen that certain stablecoins can be frozen by the issuing houses and they too, much like the banks, can refuse to comment.

[stadus]

This is the exact situation you can avoid through crypto currency, although with recent happening we've seen that certain stablecoins can be frozen by the issuing houses and they too, much like the banks, can refuse to comment.

Comparing banks and stablecoins, I would rather use stablecoins since they are regulated by the US government and I believe they are less affected by politics. And as for the requirements, there's not much compared to the banking industry where at any time they can require you to submit KYC and other documents to justify your funds but will still fail you. And based on what OP shared, my theory is I think government power is being used to silence the opposition.

And  Yianis Varoufakis  is also against the current banking system, according to his article Time to Blow Up the Banking System.

[Die_empty]

FWIW, they do also accept cryptocurrency donations to cover the emergency expenses that will come after their account got frozen:
https://i.diem25.org/donations/to/debanking

Unfortunately can't be anonymous as per their own page.

Good to see that cryptocurrency is now rescuing organizations from authoritarian governments. A government that restricts the rights of citizens is autocratic. The sad part of it is that the government would still track down those who donate to the organization since payments are not anonymous.

When I read the word Leftist that means they are against the government or to be specific certain rules of the government. And banks are regulated by the government, so it's possible that the order is coming from the government to put some pressure on them, if they have not violated any rules particularly anti money laundering.

That's the reason why Bitcoin was born, self-custody is always the better solution when it comes to controlling our own money, as banks can be corrupt and can be used for political persecution if what happened could qualify as that.

The government wants to silence them because they support Palestine and attack the elites.

[Spaceman1000$]

The international offshoot of Yianis Varoufakis' Greek political party, Diem25, got its bank account shut down, reportedly without explanation.

https://novaramedia.com/2026/11/03/leftwing-alliance-led-by-yanis-varoufakis-loses-access-to-bank-account/

The account was created with a Belgian bank where the organization has its headquarters and employs two permanent staffers. Now the organization's regular expenses like salaries are at risk of not being covered. Even though it seems like the organization was doing everything properly and "the legal way", having a registered official account and following tax policy, the bank declined to comment about the closure.

Diem25 is a vocal advocate against the genocide in Palestine and the EU's complicity among other things, like calling out the extensive influence of oligarchs in today's society.

I know many people here may not agree with their politics, (trust me, I'm not a fan either) but this is a very characteristic example on how one can't rely on banking if what they want to bring forth is real change.

FWIW, they do also accept cryptocurrency donations to cover the emergency expenses that will come after their account got frozen:
https://i.diem25.org/donations/to/debanking

Unfortunately can't be anonymous as per their own page.

If as a political party you know that you want to stand against constitutional authorities and have your say, you should learn how to stay off grid, the Diem25 has been operating since 11 years, but the authorities are finding it now as threat to them now. If they had fully gone decentralized just like adopting Bitcoin, they wouldn't have found themselves in in this mess, now the political party cannot pay salaries of their staffs, and can barely function properly without financial operation. So whenever you want to stand as a strong opposition to the government and people in power, don't use the facilities the government can control like the Banks.

[Iroh]

When I read the word Leftist that means they are against the government or to be specific certain rules of the government. And banks are regulated by the government, so it's possible that the order is coming from the government to put some pressure on them, if they have not violated any rules particularly anti money laundering.

That's the reason why Bitcoin was born, self-custody is always the better solution when it comes to controlling our own money, as banks can be corrupt and can be used for political persecution if what happened could qualify as that.

How exactly does the word "leftist" equals being against the government? With this viewpoint, you'll probably categorize the right-wing as patriotic, wholly supports the government and all its authoritarian activities. Quite absurd if you ask me.

You're right on the notion that as banks are regulated by the government, then it's not surprising that this is perceived as an intervention by the government.
Whatever the case may be, this is yet another story of cryptocurrency again coming to the rescue and saving the day. Having been closed off from their banking accounts, they're now relying on donations(crypto included)to help them stay afloat. I clicked on the donations page and saw they've got an option to donate in crypto. Although they noted donations in crypto wouldn't stay anonymous due to legal/tax reasons.

[slapper]

What gets me is that Varoufakis himself has been a vocal critic of bitcoin, deeming it fantasy money, arguing that no money is free of politics because somebody is always in charge of its value. Varoufakis, who served as the finance minister of Greece while its banks were shut, should know how fast access to your own money can disappear. He was right that money is political. He just didn't expect it to be his movement's money lol.

The account OP posted about belongs to a small political organization with a handful of employees and a smattering of donations from who knows where. If you're the bank, that type of account is not profitable. If they generate negative press, you'll be fielding calls. While it may not cost you anything to close the account, keeping it open costs time and carries a bit of risk. Easy call, and you don't even have to say why.

Plenty of people on this forum probably didn't care when Farage was debanked, but right now it's the other side that's getting debanked, and everyone seems appalled or amused depending on which side they're on. If you only care about debanking when your own side is affected, then debanking isn't really the issue for you. The only thing you care about is who it happens to.

[Mrbluntzy]

That's the problem with relying mainly on traditional banking system, some people wait until they are in this kind of situation before they start to trust other alternative that should have been a backup from the start. Bitcoin gives the best of financial freedom and no body can control your money unless you store it in centralized custody wallet. Had it been this organization had Bitcoin reserve held in self-custody, the closure of their bank account would not have had a much impact on them.

[bitLeap]

This is the exact situation you can avoid through crypto currency, although with recent happening we've seen that certain stablecoins can be frozen by the issuing houses and they too, much like the banks, can refuse to comment.

Comparing banks and stablecoins, I would rather use stablecoins since they are regulated by the US government and I believe they are less affected by politics. And as for the requirements, there's not much compared to the banking industry where at any time they can require you to submit KYC and other documents to justify your funds but will still fail you. And based on what OP shared, my theory is I think government power is being used to silence the opposition.

And  Yianis Varoufakis  is also against the current banking system, according to his article Time to Blow Up the Banking System.

Well if the problem is only around the individual who is against the government then if he is using a stablecoin it will not be frozen. Because it is still in the realm of forms of freedom of expression, it is different if stablecoins are the result of stealing/hacking, or the purpose is to fund wars, buy weapons and others that are treason to the detriment of many parties, the opportunity to be frozen is quite large.

[BlackHatCoiner]

If only there was a banking system available in cyberspace that is censorship-resistant, where funds cannot be frozen, where inflation is completely predictable and where people can sleep easy that they can always move their funds overseas, with no question.

Not sure if Mr. Varoufakis would rather have that system though. Not being able to control the money supply must be a deal-breaker to him. 

[Doll2233]

This situation is raising concern but I don't think that it is enough to conclude that the banking system cannot be relied upon just because of the closure of one bank account. Banks have obligations and accounts can be closed or suspended for multiple reasons in which some of them are regulatory concerned or internal risk assessment. The main problem is lack of transparency. If an organisation is working okay,  they are working legally, then it should also receive a clear explanation and also an opportunity to challenge any type of decision.
This is a point where cryptocurrency offers and alternative. With it people can receive donation without entirely being dependent on the old traditional financial institutions. But still crypto is not completely free from risk and the privacy depends on how it is being used.