What the FTC’s Nuvei order says about business coaching
I’m building a product for coaches. When people started saying the FTC had put “business coaching” on a list, I went and read the documents. It’s narrower than it sounds.
The FTC sued the payment processor Nuvei on September 3, 2026. The case is mostly about tech support scams. Nuvei agreed to pay $4.85 million to settle, and a federal court in Arizona entered the order on September 9.
The coaching part traces back to one merchant in the complaint, DK Automation. The FTC says it “used false and unfounded earnings claims to sell business coaching programs” along with Amazon stores.
The order defines a “Business Coaching Program” as “any product or service, including any program or plan, that is represented, expressly or by implication, to train or teach a consumer how to establish, operate, or improve a business.”
Nuvei clients that sell one count as “Covered Clients,” along with sellers of tech support, debt relief and a few other things. Nuvei has to screen those clients before taking them on. After that it has to check on them at least monthly, including their websites, complaints and chargeback rates.
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What I’d want a coach to know:
- It binds Nuvei and the people acting for it. Stripe, PayPal and Square aren’t part of this case.
- It covers programs sold as teaching someone to start, run or improve a business. Coaching in general isn’t covered.
- There’s no list of coaches. Being a covered client means Nuvei looks closer. It isn’t a finding that you did anything wrong.
- The chargeback trigger is high. Nuvei has to investigate any client, covered or not, that “in any two of the past six (6) months, had a monthly Chargeback Rate in excess of 1.0% and more than seventy-five (75) Chargebacks in a month.” Few solo coaches get near 75 in a month.
I still think the order is a fair picture of what processors look at. One thing that stops Nuvei from taking on a covered client is “Failing to clearly and conspicuously disclose all material terms and conditions of an offer.”
So I’d write down what’s included and how refunds work, and get the client to sign it. I’d also keep session notes and the client’s own messages. If someone ever disputes a charge, that record is what you’ll have to show.
This is my own reading, not legal advice. The documents are linked above if you want to check me.
I’m building Alibi to help coaches keep that kind of record. The waitlist is at withalibi.com/#waitlist.
