By Pete Schroeder
WASHINGTON, Dec 10 (Reuters) – The nine biggest U.S. banks in the past banned some controversial industries from providing financial services in a move commonly known as “debanking,” the regulator that oversees the big national banks said in a report on Wednesday.
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency began its review after President Donald Trump signed an executive order in August directing a regulatory review of all banks for any current or past practices that would effectively bar customers based on political or religious beliefs.
Without providing specific examples of wrongdoing at banks, the OCC said its ongoing review found all firms had policies that either denied services to certain industries or required higher levels of scrutiny than actual financial risks from 2020 to 2023.
“It is unfortunate that the country’s biggest banks thought these harmful debanking policies were a fair exercise of their government-granted charter and market power. While many of these policies were taken in plain sight and even announced publicly, some banks insisted they were not involved in debanking,” Comptroller Jonathan De Curran said in a statement.
“Going forward, the OCC will hold banks accountable for these actions and ensure that illegal debanking does not continue,” Gould said.
The agency said its review is ongoing and it plans to hold the banks “accountable,” including possible referrals to the Justice Department.
The OCC said it plans to keep looking into the matter, saying it is reviewing “thousands” of complaints about banking based on political or religious beliefs, for example.
The report did not provide specific examples, but among the firms examined were JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Citigroup, Wells Fargo, US Bank, Capital One, PNC, TD Bank and BMO Bank. The banks either declined to comment or did not respond to requests for comment.
The Bank Policy Institute, a trade organization for big banks, said in a statement that banks want to serve as many customers as possible, and it welcomes any clarity from the government.
“The industry supports fair access to banking and is working with Congress and the administration to ensure banks are able to serve law-abiding customers,” the group said in a statement. “We also support recent regulatory efforts and clear and consistent standards that maintain sound risk management while protecting access to America’s banking system.”
