Walmart paid $10 million to settle FTC allegations it allowed scammers to exploit its money-transfer services

Summary

The Federal Trade Commission announced a $10 million settlement with Walmart in June 2025 resolving allegations concerning fraud conducted through money-transfer services offered in Walmart stores. The FTC originally sued Walmart in 2022. According to the Commission, between 2013 and 2018 scammers used money-transfer services available at Walmart stores to obtain hundreds of millions of dollars from consumers. Walmart acted as an agent for money-transfer providers including MoneyGram, Western Union and Ria. The FTC alleged that Walmart failed to implement effective anti-fraud policies and procedures for its money-transfer operations. The Commission further alleged that Walmart did not adequately train employees to recognize and prevent fraudulent transfers. According to the FTC, Walmart also failed to sufficiently warn consumers about fraud risks associated with money transfers. The government alleged that Walmart's procedures allowed fraudsters to receive and cash out fraudulent transfers through Walmart locations. The FTC described victims as including consumers targeted through scams in which criminals persuaded them to transfer money that could be rapidly collected by the fraudsters. In June 2025, Walmart agreed to a $10 million monetary judgment to resolve the FTC litigation. The stipulated order also imposed requirements intended to prevent Walmart from facilitating fraud-induced money transfers in the future. Among other provisions, the order prohibits Walmart from providing money-transfer services without taking timely and appropriate steps to detect and prevent fraud-induced transfers. It also prohibits Walmart from sending or paying out transfers when it knows, or consciously avoids knowing, that a transfer resulted from fraud. The settlement resolves the FTC's claims without converting every allegation in the original complaint into an admitted factual finding. Primary source: Federal Trade Commission — Walmart to Pay $10 Million to Settle FTC Allegations it Allowed Scammers to Obtain Millions from Consumers Using Company's Wire Transfer Services: https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2025/06/walmart-pay-10-million-settle-ftc-allegations-it-allowed-scammers-obtain-millions-consumers-using