Yellowstone Capital lawsuit: FTC case, NY AG settlement, and what the record shows

Yellowstone Capital lawsuit timeline: FTC settlement and refunds, the New York AG March 2024 suit, and the January 2025 debt cancellation settlement.

Updated 2026-10-30

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By Anonymous MCA industry contributor Research, writing and editorial review · MCA sales background

Yellowstone Capital LLC and related entities appear in two major public enforcement tracks involving merchant cash advances: a Federal Trade Commission action that settled in 2021 with refunds, and a New York Attorney General lawsuit filed in March 2024 that produced a January 2025 settlement canceling outstanding Yellowstone merchant debts. This page summarizes what those official records establish, and what they do not.

Editorial update: 2026-10-30 · Desk research of public FTC and NYS OAG materials only. Not legal advice.

Why “Yellowstone Capital lawsuit” usually means two different cases

Search results for Yellowstone Capital lawsuit mix federal consumer-protection litigation with a later New York state enforcement case. Confusing them leads to wrong assumptions about refunds, debt cancellation, and whether a private MCA funder will settle with you.

Track	Primary plaintiff	Core public outcome (as stated by agencies)
FTC v. Yellowstone Capital et al.	Federal Trade Commission	2021 stipulated order; ~$9.8M for redress; refunds administered by the FTC
People of the State of New York v. Yellowstone Capital et al.	New York Attorney General	March 2024 suit; January 2025 settlement canceling ~$534M in Yellowstone merchant debts plus cash restitution

Neither case is a template for every merchant cash advance dispute. An order against Yellowstone (or related entities named in those dockets) does not automatically create a settlement discount, defense, or refund program for a different funder.

FTC case (filed 2020; settled 2021)

In August 2020 the FTC announced a complaint against Yellowstone Capital and related parties. The Commission alleged deceptive practices in marketing merchant cash advances and unauthorized withdrawals from business bank accounts after balances were repaid.

The case was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York as FTC v. Yellowstone Capital LLC, No. 1:20-cv-06023, and the docket shows the stipulated order entered on May 4, 2021. In April 2021 the FTC announced that Yellowstone Capital, Fundry, and named individuals agreed to a stipulated final order requiring payment of $9,837,000 for redress and permanently restricting certain financing and withdrawal practices. Defendants neither admitted nor denied the complaint’s allegations except as needed for jurisdiction, per the public order materials.

FTC refunds (separate from the NY AG settlement)

As summarized in our earlier correction on FTC MCA refunds vs. RAM Capital, FTC materials describe refund distributions beginning in 2022 with later rounds. Eligibility is case-specific; check current FTC refund materials and the named administrator before acting on any refund claim. Do not assume every MCA merchant qualifies because they once held an advance.

New York Attorney General lawsuit (filed March 2024)

On March 2024, New York Attorney General Letitia James sued Yellowstone Capital entities and officers. OAG materials allege that products marketed as merchant cash advances functioned as high-interest loans, with fixed daily debits and reconciliation practices that rarely adjusted payments to actual revenue. Allegations described in OAG’s public releases, not as findings we independently re-litigated.

January 2025 settlement with Yellowstone entities

On January 22, 2025, OAG announced a settlement with Yellowstone Capital companies and certain officers. According to the OAG press release and the OAG Yellowstone settlement resource page (page noted as updated April 16, 2026):

Outstanding merchant debts to covered Yellowstone companies totaling about $534 million were canceled
An immediate cash payment of $16.1 million was described for distribution to impacted small businesses, within a larger judgment figure reported by OAG
Covered Yellowstone entities and settling officers were permanently banned from the MCA industry under the settlement terms OAG describes
Judgments and certain liens tied to Yellowstone MCAs were addressed through court vacatur processes and lien-termination procedures administered with Rust Consulting

OAG’s resource page lists dozens of Yellowstone-related entities covered by the settlement (including Yellowstone Capital LLC, Fundry LLC, Green Capital Funding LLC, High Speed Capital LLC, World Global Capital LLC, and others). Compare your contract’s legal name, not only a DBA or broker name, to that official list.

What the OAG page says about claims and timelines

OAG states that Rust Consulting administered claims; notices went out in 2025; the claim period closed January 9, 2026; and payments to qualifying claimants were mailed around April 3, 2026. Debt cancellation for outstanding Yellowstone MCA balances is described as automatic for covered debts. Judgment vacatur and lien termination had separate notice and deadline mechanics. Always verify current instructions on the OAG page. Deadlines may already have passed for some forms of relief.

Ongoing case against other parties

OAG’s settlement page is clear that the Yellowstone settlement does not resolve claims against Delta Bridge Funding (also known as Cloudfund) and certain other individuals still in the litigation (New York County case 450750/2024). OAG notes that on March 4, 2026, the court allowed OAG’s claims against remaining defendants to proceed. That ongoing docket is separate from the settled Yellowstone entities.

What this record does not establish

It does not prove that every merchant cash advance is illegal or unenforceable
It does not create a refund or debt-cancellation program for non-Yellowstone funders
It does not pause court deadlines in a private collection suit against your business
It does not replace reading your summons, contract, guarantees, and UCC filings

If you were served by a different funder, start with Merchant cash advance lawsuit: what it is and what to do and Served with an MCA lawsuit: first 30 days.

Practical checklist if you think you had a Yellowstone (or related) MCA

Identify the contracting entity on the agreement and ACH descriptors; match against OAG’s published Yellowstone company list
Separate tracks: FTC refunds vs. NY AG debt cancellation / vacatur / claims. Different administrators and rules
Preserve documents: contracts, payment history, UCC searches, judgments, and any Rust or FTC notices
Do not stop remittances to other funders based on Yellowstone headlines alone
Get jurisdiction-specific advice before assuming a judgment is vacated or a lien is released

For UCC mechanics generally, see UCC liens from MCA funders. For confession-of-judgment pressure, see Signed a Confession of Judgment?.

Related funder lawsuit pages

Yellowstone's FTC and NY AG matters are the best known in this space; our MCA lawsuit tracker shows how they compare with cases against other funders.

Sources checked October 27, 2026

Desk research only. We did not contact Yellowstone, Rust Consulting, or OAG intake for this update, and we did not review any merchant’s private claim file.

Takeaway

Treat “Yellowstone Capital lawsuit” as at least two public enforcement stories, FTC redress and a later NY AG debt-cancellation settlement, then match your contract’s legal name to the official lists before assuming any refund, vacatur, or industry-wide remedy applies to you.

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