Getting paid discreetly: what your client sees with a bank transfer, a payment app or a QR code
Since October 2025, banks in the euro area check the name against the account number on every transfer. What this means for sex workers and creators who want to be paid discreetly, and which payment method shows which name.
If you work in the adult industry, you want to be paid without your client seeing your real name, your home address or your private account. That is not a luxury: your name on a client's bank statement is a name that can travel. At the same time, payments in Europe have become more transparent in recent years, not less. This article explains what a client sees with each common payment method, and what to look at when discretion matters.
The name check on transfers since October 2025
Since 9 October 2025, banks in the euro area must check, on every euro transfer, whether the name the payer types in matches the account number. The check is called Verification of Payee. Belgian banks such as BNP Paribas Fortis and KBC Brussels explain on their websites how it works: before the payer confirms, they see a green tick (name matches), an orange warning (close match or no match) or a grey sign (check not possible).
What matters for you as the person receiving the money:
- For private accounts, the payer's bank normally does not display the real name of the account holder. With a small typo, however, it may suggest the correct spelling. If you use your private account and let a client type a pseudonym, the client will often see an orange warning, and in some cases a suggestion that reveals your real name.
- For businesses, the official name from the Crossroads Bank for Enterprises is used. At BNP Paribas Fortis a business can also register trade names and abbreviations so they are recognised as correct.
- The check does not apply to direct debits, card payments or payments in foreign currency. Whether it applies to a QR code or a payment request with pre-filled details is not stated explicitly on those pages. Ask your own bank.
The lesson: it is no longer only about the name you put on your invoice. It is about the name officially attached to your account number.
Payment apps: PayPal, Wise, Revolut
UTSOPI, the Belgian union of sex workers, warns in its guide for the self-employed that PayPal, Wise and Revolut display your birth name and can block your account. These apps are built for consumers and their terms often exclude payments for sexual services. A block means your money is stuck while the service reviews your file. For small one-off amounts between friends they are convenient; for your professional income they are a risk, both to your discretion and to your money.
Cash
Cash shows no name, but it has other drawbacks. You have to deposit it and explain where it comes from, because banks watch large or regular cash deposits. In Belgium, moreover, businesses have been obliged since 2022 to offer clients at least one electronic payment method, including the self-employed in the adult industry. Read more in our article on Belgium's electronic payment obligation.
What your client sees with GloryPay
A GloryPay account is in the name of your business or your artist name. On an ordinary bank transfer, your client sees that name, never your personal name. Your client pays by scanning the GloryPay QR code with their own bank's app; the payment shows only a neutral reference and your personal details are not shared. Opening an account is free, with no monthly or yearly fees, and every application goes through the usual KYC check. Why that check exists is explained in our article on opening a bank account as a sex worker.
Tip: choose one payment method for your work and use it consistently. The fewer channels you use, the fewer places where your name can surface.
Three questions to ask before choosing a payment method
- Which name is officially attached to this account number? That name can become visible on a transfer or be suggested by the client's bank.
- Do the service's terms allow my activity? If not, you risk a block at the worst possible moment.
- What appears on my client's statement? A neutral reference protects you and your client.
This article is for information only and is not legal or tax advice. Sources: BNP Paribas Fortis, "Verification of Payee: what's changing in your Easy Banking" (30/06/2025); KBC Brussels, "Verification of name at beneficiary bank"; UTSOPI asbl, "Guide indépendant" (2025, pp. 13-17). Status: 09/11/2026.