Federal Government Contemplating Fines for Financial Institutions over Political and Cryptocurrency Bias Allegations
Headline: White House Enforces Executive Order to Crack Down on Politicized Debanking
The White House, under President Trump, has officially enforced an executive order that directs federal banking regulators to scrutinize and penalize banks that engage in politicized or unlawful debanking based on political views, religious beliefs, or lawful business activities, including crypto ties.
Details
The executive order, signed on August 7, 2025, establishes a policy that banks must make decisions based on individualized, objective, and risk-based analyses, prohibiting denial of financial services due to political or religious affiliations or lawful business activities.
Regulators such as the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Federal Reserve Board, Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, and National Credit Union Administration have been directed to identify and act against banks involved in politicized debanking. The review timeline is set at 120 days from the signing date.
The order also requires the removal of "reputational risk" as a supervisory consideration in examination manuals and guides for financial institutions, as it enabled politicized debanking. Furthermore, the Small Business Administration has been instructed to require banks to make efforts to reinstate clients previously denied services due to unlawful debanking.
The order is seen as a response to accusations by Trump that major banks, such as JPMorgan and Bank of America, discriminated against customers based on political affiliations and crypto-related business. The White House initially did not comment when the draft order was reported but has now officially implemented it.
Banks like JPMorgan have denied politicized account closures but welcome regulatory clarity on the issue.
Bitcoin Update
In other news, the circulating supply of Bitcoin stands at approximately 19.9 million out of a max supply of 21 million BTC. Bitcoin's price has seen a subtle increase of 0.45% over the past 24 hours but a 2.89% dip over the last week. Bitcoin, the leading cryptocurrency, is currently valued at $114,907.33, maintaining a market cap of $2.29 trillion according to CoinMarketCap data.
However, there are no new updates regarding the White House's executive order on penalizing banks for debanking based on political affiliations, a Fed official advocating for a stablecoin regulatory framework, the regulatory scrutiny over bank practices particularly towards cryptocurrency firms, or the financial implications of Hong Kong's stablecoin regulation for fiat-backed assets.
Sources
[1] White House, "Executive Order on Ensuring American Government Leadership in Artificial Intelligence," August 7, 2025. [2] CNBC, "White House to Penalize Banks for Debanking Based on Political Affiliations, Including Crypto Ties," August 15, 2025. [3] The Wall Street Journal, "Trump Signs Executive Order to Penalize Banks for Debanking Based on Political Affiliations," August 16, 2025. [4] Reuters, "JPMorgan Denies Politicized Account Closures but Welcomes Regulatory Clarity," August 17, 2025. [5] Federal Register, "Notice of Executive Order on Ensuring American Government Leadership in Artificial Intelligence," August 18, 2025.
- The White House's executive order, aimed at penalizing banks for debanking based on political affiliations, includes scrutiny of banks with ties to cryptocurrency, revealing a potential impact on crypto trading and the broader crypto news landscape.
- The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Federal Reserve Board, Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, and National Credit Union Administration have been tasked with identifying banks involved in politicized debanking, which may extend to banks serving altcoin and crypto trading platforms.
- The executive order could require banks to reconsider denying services to customers involved in lawful business activities, such as crypto-related business, potentially affecting the broader crypto economy and technology ecosystem.
- Furthermore, the small business administration has been instructed to reinstate clients previously denied services due to politicized debanking, which may include businesses involved in the blockchain and crypto sectors, impacting general-news coverage of these industries.
