JBizNews Desk | Washington
WASHINGTON — Federal regulators said Wednesday that major U.S. banks restricted financial services based on customers’ political views, religious beliefs and lawful business activities, escalating Washington’s scrutiny of account closures affecting conservative organizations and other customers.
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau announced a new initiative following findings by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. The bureau specifically cited treatment of Trump supporters, MAGA-related businesses and anti-abortion causes, saying it would investigate whether banks violated federal consumer financial laws.
The OCC reviewed JPMorgan Chase Bank, Bank of America, Citibank, Wells Fargo Bank, U.S. Bank, Capital One, PNC Bank, TD Bank and BMO Bank. It said all nine maintained policies between 2020 and September 2025 that could influence decisions to deny or limit services because of beliefs or lawful commercial activities.
At the center of the findings were broad policies addressing reputational risk. The regulator said those policies lacked clear standards and objective financial criteria, allowing judgments about customers’ affiliations or industries to shape banking decisions. Examiners reviewed nearly 100,000 complaints and approximately 420,000 pages of bank documents.
One example involved a bank-owned payment processor that closed a merchant’s account in February 2021 after identifying sales of Trump and MAGA merchandise. Another concerned a bank payments subsidiary that terminated services for a religious conservative nonprofit.
The findings also included a February 2023 decision to reject a public education organization because its political arm endorsed only Democrats. That example shows the report’s concerns extended beyond conservative customers to the use of partisan affiliation in financial decisions more broadly.
Other cases involved unequal treatment within lawful industries. The report described a bank denying a small loan to a business making sporting-rifle components while providing a multimillion-dollar letter of credit to a multinational firearms company.
For businesses and nonprofits, losing banking or payment-processing services can disrupt ordinary operations. Organizations may need to redirect donations, replace merchant accounts and change payroll or supplier-payment arrangements. Finding another provider does not necessarily eliminate the administrative burden or interruptions.
Acting CFPB Director Mark Paoletta characterized the conduct as targeting customers whose views conflicted with the Biden administration and its allies. That political characterization is distinct from establishing that administration officials ordered individual account closures. The OCC review covered periods before and after Joe Biden’s presidency.
The CFPB said its examination would include compliance with the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, Fair Credit Reporting Act and prohibitions against unfair, deceptive or abusive practices. Whether a particular decision violated those laws will depend on the facts and applicable requirements.
Banks have denied rejecting customers because of political or religious beliefs and have argued that regulatory pressure discouraged services to some industries, Reuters reported. Wednesday’s OCC report did not impose fines or other penalties.
Comptroller Jonathan Gould said further regulatory and supervisory changes were under consideration. For banks, the next question is whether the findings lead to enforceable changes in how they approve customers, close accounts and explain those decisions.
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Image: AI-generated editorial illustration of banking access; not an AP photograph or a documented account closure.
