House Oversight Committee James Comer has launched an investigation into what he has described as the "debanking" of conservative individuals due to their political views or involvement in the crypto industry. The investigation comes a day after President Donald Trump accused the CEOs of Bank of America and JP Morgan Chase of such behavior.
"I hope you start opening your bank to conservatives, because many conservatives complain that the banks are not allowing them to do business within the bank, and that included a place called Bank of America," Trump said on Thursday while addressing the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, virtually.
The banks rejected the claims, but Comer is seeking information from different members of the crypto industry to delve further into the matter. Uniswap Labs CEO Hayden Adams, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong and Payward Inc. CEO Dave Ripley are among the recipients of the letter.
Comer said another catalyst was a statement from investor Marc Andressen, who in an interview said that approximately 30 tech founders were debanked due to their political positions, which he argued were against the Biden administration. He added that in her memoir First Lady Melania Trump said she experienced a similar situation due to her political views.
The document says it is investigating whether these actions stem from decisions by financial institutions or pressures from government regulators. The inquiry draws parallels to "Operation Chokepoint," an alleged policy under the Obama administration that allegedly pressured private entities to sever ties with legal businesses deemed high risk. The Committee is examining whether similar tactics influenced actions during the Biden administration, specifically targeting industries such as cryptocurrency.
The letter makes reference to crypto leaders discussing experiences with debanking and seeks for them to lay out "how these actions hurt innovation, entrepreneurs, and workers." "Further, to better inform the Committee's investigation, the Committee seeks to understand the financial institutions and regulators involved, the reasons tech founders were given as to why they were debanked, and how this overreach affected business operations."
Originally published on Latin Times
