White House Plans Order To Probe Banks Over Political Account Closures

The White House is preparing an executive order that would penalize banks for dropping customers based on political, according to The Wall Street Journal. The draft order instructs financial regulators to investigate potential violations of antitrust, consumer protection, and credit opportunity laws. It could trigger fines, consent decrees, or other penalties. While the order does not name specific banks, it references previous allegations against Bank of America and criticizes banks’ roles in the January 6th investigation. The move follows years of conservative and crypto industry claims that banks have denied them services for ideological reasons. Banks, citing anti-money-laundering concerns, have said their decisions are based on legal and regulatory risk. The draft also calls for a review of bank policies by regulators and the Small Business Administration, and refers some violations to the Department of Justice.