Cointelegraph by Zoltan Vardai
US President Donald Trump’s administration is reportedly considering an executive order aimed at preventing banks from cutting off services to politically unfavorable industries, including cryptocurrency firms, according to a report from The Wall Street Journal, citing unnamed sources.
The move would come in response to allegations that some banks have denied services to tech and crypto entrepreneurs as part of a coordinated debanking campaign critics have dubbed “Operation Chokepoint 2.0.”
At least 30 technology and cryptocurrency founders were reportedly denied access to banking services during the Biden administration.
Trump administration weighs executive order
Representatives from JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup, Wells Fargo and other major US banks have met with state officials in Texas and Oklahoma to defend against allegations that they refuse to serve the fun manufacturing and fossil-fuel extraction industries, sources told the WSJ.
In February, Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren called on the Trump administration to take action against the country’s biggest banks for denying services based on political or industry considerations.
“For me this is straightforward: it doesn’t matter who you voted for, what you believe in, or the origin of your last name, people shouldn’t be arbitrarily denied access to their banks, locked out of their accounts or stripped of their banking privileges,” Warren said at a Senate Banking Committee hearing in February.
Related: FDIC chair, ‘architect of Operation Chokepoint 2.0’ Martin Gruenberg to resign Jan. 19
In March 2023, the US banking system took a hit following the sudden collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and the voluntary liquidation of Silvergate Bank. Signature Bank was also forced to close operations by New York regulators on March 12, two days after Silvergate Bank’s liquidation.
The sudden collapse of three crypto-friendly US banks was called Operation Chokepoint 2.0 by crypto venture capitalist Nic Carter, who saw it as a “coordinated effort” to unbank the crypto industry.
Related: Paolo Ardoino: Competitors and politicians intend to ‘kill Tether’
Crypto debanking may continue until 2026
Despite a more favorable crypto regulatory regime under the Trump administration, the industry’s debanking concerns may persist until 2026.
“It’s premature to say that debanking is over,” according to Caitlin Long, founder and CEO of Custodia Bank. She said during Cointelegraph’s Chainreaction daily X show on March 21:
“Trump won’t have the ability to appoint a new Fed governor until January. Therefore, you can see the breadcrumbs leading up to a potentially big fight.”
“Because if the OCC and FDIC overturn their anti-crypto guidance but the Fed does not, where does that leave us?” she added.
Long’s Custodia Bank was repeatedly targeted by the US debanking efforts, costing the firm months of work and “a couple of million dollars,” she explained.
Trump previously vowed that he was “ending Operation Chokepoint 2.0” during his speech at the White House Crypto Summit on March 7.
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