FROM FOX BUSINESS: In the wake of President Donald Trump’s executive order outlawing debanking, major bank executives told Fox News Digital that they were under pressure by the Obama and Biden administrations to deny services to individuals and businesses for political reasons.
Fox News Digital spoke with two executives at leading U.S. banks, who asked to remain anonymous, fearing reprisals.
The executives said that ambiguity in federal laws was exploited by regulators under the Obama and Biden administrations in order to pursue political objectives. According to one executive, banks were pressured to deny services to certain industries as part of Operation Choke Point and Operation Choke Point 2.0.
One executive told the outlet: “Those pressures were very, very real. When your regulator gives you a suggestion, it’s not a suggestion, it’s an order. The political stuff is very real, those pressures are real.”
“When there’s ambiguity in the law, beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and for a long time the beholder was the Obama and Biden administration,” a bank official reportedly explained.
Debanking, a practice originating from anti-money laundering laws, involves banks closing accounts or denying services. Recently, conservative and religious groups have accused banks of discrimination.
Federal Reserve Governor Michelle Bowman expresses her concerns about debanking https://t.co/5djloB5OgZ pic.twitter.com/v8UumWbthR
— Bloomberg TV (@BloombergTV) August 19, 2025
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