The US Office of the Comptroller of the Currency issued a report on Wednesday that identified discriminatory actions by a JPMorgan Chase subsidiary against conservative clients. The findings formed part of a wider supervisory examination of nine large banks that faced claims of restricting services due to customers political or religious backgrounds.

Debanking involves restricting or denying banking services such as account closures or loan refusals. Although not always unlawful the practice draws criticism when decisions rest on political or religious factors instead of financial or regulatory risks.

The examination followed an executive order from President Donald Trump in August 2025 that sought to ensure equal banking access. While not a court decision the review documented cases the administration considered violations of that directive.

Officials analyzed nearly 100000 complaints filed from 2020 through 2025 along with more than 50000 supporting documents. The probe covered Bank of America Citibank Wells Fargo US Bank Capital One PNC Bank TD Bank and BMO Bank in addition to JPMorgan Chase.

Results revealed several instances of bias. The JPMorgan subsidiary WePay closed accounts tied to pro Trump merchandise including items labeled as hateful or intolerant by bank staff.

In one 2021 example WePay terminated a conservative clients account after flagging sales of a Trump victory flag and apparel questioning the legitimacy of former President Joe Biden.

Another 2021 case saw the subsidiary pause payment processing for an event because of social media comments describing Biden and Dr Anthony Fauci as adversaries though the hold was later lifted.

WePay also ended services for a nonprofit after noting its stance on LGBTQ topics with staff describing the group as a right wing religious conservative entity with strong anti LGBTQ rhetoric.

WePay unit discontinued after internal assessment JPMorgan states

A JPMorgan representative told CBS News that the subsidiary was shut down following the disclosures.

WePay failed to meet company standards the spokesperson said. Issues were identified corrected and the operation has since ceased.

The bank maintains policies that bar discrimination based on political or religious perspectives the representative added.

Further findings showed JPMorgan employees altered records of rejected clients to remove references to political views. In one instance a senior staff member ordered deletion of terms such as right wing and very tasteless gun centric videos from files after repeated service denials between 2021 and 2023.

One redacted note suggested that as far right competitors absorbed extreme clients the situation might become more suitable for JPMorgan to provide services.

PNC Bank similarly refused credit to a media firm partly because employee views clashed with the owners conservative positions. An internal message noted difficulty aligning with owners whose public opinions conflicted with PNC values.

Capital One applied restrictions across political lines

Capital One rejected account requests from Democratic pro abortion groups and also from a pro gun organization. Wells Fargo ended payment services for a religious nonprofit even though no contract breach occurred.

Additional concerns involved stricter scrutiny for small businesses compared with larger firms and environmental criteria that limited lending to non renewable energy projects.

Currency Comptroller Jonathan V. Gould stated that the report offers clear proof of denial and discrimination by the largest banks. He emphasized that Americans deserve financial access regardless of beliefs or affiliations and called for stronger regulatory measures to prevent recurrence.

Other banks declined direct comment and referred inquiries to a banking trade group statement supporting fair access while stressing sound risk management.