The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency is reported to be preparing findings from a supervisory review into whether major US lenders improperly closed or restricted customer accounts on political, religious or industry-related grounds.
The review has placed JPMorgan, Bank of America, Citigroup, Wells Fargo, Capital One, U.S. Bank, PNC, TD Bank and BMO Bank under renewed scrutiny over so-called debanking, a term used to describe cases where banks cut off or limit access to financial services. The OCC is expected to publish findings in the coming weeks and may name specific banks, with possible outcomes ranging from private supervisory notices to public enforcement actions and penalties.
The issue has become a regulatory flashpoint under President Donald Trump, who has accused banks of discriminating against conservatives and has brought legal claims against JPMorgan and Capital One over account closures. The banks have denied political bias and say account decisions are driven by risk management, unusual activity, paperwork concerns, customer due diligence and other compliance factors. The OCC’s preliminary work previously flagged that nine large banks had policies between 2020 and 2023 restricting services to some industries or groups, with the agency reviewing around 100,000 related complaints.
For CFOs and finance directors, the case cuts directly into the tension between conduct risk, reputational risk and lawful customer access. Financial institutions have spent years strengthening anti-money laundering controls, sanctions screening, know-your-customer processes and sector-risk policies. The current review tests whether those controls can be applied without creating a perception that clients are being excluded for political views, religious beliefs or lawful commercial activity.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Washington is also investigating whether banks may have breached the Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery and Enforcement Act of 1989. That widens the issue beyond supervision into potential legal exposure, even though the enforcement theory remains unclear. Comptroller Jonathan Gould told lawmakers this month that the OCC was investigating debanking and considering where liability could arise under existing law.
The broader financial sector will be watching closely because any public findings could reshape how banks document account closures, sector exclusions and risk appetite decisions. JPMorgan has already removed restrictions affecting some firearm-related businesses, while Citi has dropped a policy that restricted services to retail clients selling firearms.
Financial professionals at regulated institutions should expect greater scrutiny of customer exit decisions, board-level policy approvals and the paper trail behind high-risk sector banking. If the OCC moves from review to enforcement, debanking could become a lasting compliance issue for banks balancing legal access, political pressure and financial crime controls.
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