In a significant development, JPMorgan Chase has finally confirmed what was widely speculated: they closed the bank accounts of former President Donald Trump and several of his businesses in early 2021, following the January 6th Capitol attacks. This admission came in a recent court filing, marking a turning point in Trump’s $5 billion lawsuit against the banking giant and its CEO, Jamie Dimon.
Trump alleges that his accounts were closed for purely political reasons, causing immense disruption to his business operations. His legal team claims JPMorgan placed him and his companies on a secret “reputational blacklist,” potentially impacting his ability to open accounts with other financial institutions. Previously, JPMorgan had only discussed account closures hypothetically, never explicitly confirming action against Trump until now.
This saga highlights “debanking,” a practice where banks close accounts or refuse services to customers. Once an obscure financial term, debanking has become a hot-button political issue. Conservatives, including Trump, argue that banks have unfairly targeted them and their associated interests under the guise of “reputational risk,” echoing past concerns like “Operation Choke Point.”
Trump’s lawyers assert that JPMorgan’s admission is a “devastating concession” proving their case of unlawful debanking and financial harm. They emphasize Trump’s commitment to fighting for all those wrongly debanked. This isn’t Trump’s first battle of this kind; he also sued Capital One for similar allegations in an ongoing case. The legal showdown over who decides who gets to bank, and why, is far from over.
