Belle Delphine’s 5-Year $90K Bath Water Nightmare Ends!

May 23, 2024
ARIANA LEVI

Viral Sensation to 5-Year Financial Nightmare: The Belle Delphine Bath Water Story

In a story that blurs the line between meme and fiscal fiasco, Belle Delphine, the world-renowned adult content creator and internet sensation, saw her high-profile "GamerGirl" bath water stunt backfire with a staggering financial twist.

In 2019, Belle Delphine, known for her cosplay and risqué content, created an online frenzy by selling jars of her bathwater for $30 each. Her quirky, pink-wig-and-cat-ears persona captivated her 3.9 million Instagram followers (later banned from the platform), and the unconventional product sold out within three days, reportedly earning her around $90,000. "I knew it would be a better news story to say that I made 'sOoOo much money' from selling my bathwater, so I just kept this secret," Delphine wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

Image Source: X (Twitter)

Despite her intentional mystique, the financial reality was less glamorous. Delphine revealed that PayPal had frozen her account in 2021 without forewarning, withholding the $90,000 she’d earned from the sales. She lamented on X, "Since it’s been a couple years now, I can finally share the biggest L I’ve ever taken." Her attempts to resolve the issue were met with silence from the payment processing giant. Each jar of bathwater sold allegedly incurred a fine of $2,500, driven by PayPal's policies that restrict transactions involving sexually oriented goods and services primarily to physical media like DVDs and magazines in the U.S., leaving digital goods and most forms of adult content in a grey area.

Yet, there was a glimmer of resolution this past week. After Belle Delphine's bathwater viral post and substantial media coverage, including inquiries from Business Insider, her funds were finally returned. "If I didn't have any [social media] following, they wouldn't have given my money back," Delphine discussed with Business Insider. "Which is so shitty because what are all the normal non-social media users meant to do in this situation? I followed all the normal protocols and was roadblocked and gave up."

This incident underscores ongoing issues faced by adult content creators with major financial platforms. Historically, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and others have criticized PayPal for its opaque and, at times, punitive measures. Delphine’s predicament is part of a broader narrative of adult content creators grappling with stringent regulations and sudden account closures from payment processors, a trend echoed by industry-wide events such as Mastercard and Visa cutting ties with Pornhub in 2020 due to concerns over child sexual exploitation.

Despite the frustrating ordeal, Delphine maintains a positive outlook and a sense of humor about the episode. "Ultimately I'm still glad I did it since it was a really funny time on the internet when it happened," she reflected. True to her ethos, Delphine assured her followers that every jar of bathwater purchased was indeed sent out, even if she had to cover the costs herself.

Belle Delphine's bathwater saga serves as a cautionary tale for digital entrepreneurs. While viral marketing can propel an individual to stardom, it can also entangle them in complex scuffles with financial institutions, highlighting the necessity for greater transparency and fairer practices in handling adult content finance.