Oct 14 (Reuters) - A top US bank regulator issued a report on Wednesday finding that several of the country's largest banks unfairly denied banking services to some clients on political, religious or other grounds, but stopped short of imposing fines or other penalties.
The "debanking" report from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency covered nine of the nation's largest banks that had policies restricting some clients' access to financial services based on subjective criteria rather than
financial risk.
Debanking occurs when a bank cuts off an account holder's access to services, often because of concerns about legal, financial or reputational risks.
The regulator chastised the banks for the practices, but did not indicate any sanctions or punishments were forthcoming. The agency said it may consider policy changes to discourage such activity in the future.
Launched in September 2025, the review examined the nine largest national banks under the regulator's supervision by asset size, which collectively hold a majority of US commercial banking assets.
"Americans should have access to financial services regardless of their beliefs, affiliations, or political views. Fair access to financial services is not a mantra — it is a mandate," Comptroller of the Currency Jonathan Gould said in a statement.
After President Donald Trump signed an executive order directing a review of alleged debanking, regulators and banks moved to eliminate the use of so-called "reputation risk" in assessing clients, though the issue remains contentious.
Conservative politicians and business groups have accused banks of cutting off companies in sectors including fossil fuels, firearms and cryptocurrency, making debanking a major flashpoint in Washington financial policy.
Large banks have denied rejecting customers on political or religious grounds, arguing instead that years of aggressive regulatory pressure discouraged them from serving certain sectors and urging Washington to establish clearer rules on who they can and cannot serve.
The OCC found that concerns about public opinion had led at least one bank to distance itself from certain customer affiliations that could be viewed as "partisan." It added that banks generally lacked clear, measurable standards and objective, risk-based criteria for assessing reputational risks associated with customer relationships.
"The OCC will continue to work with our regulatory partners to further assess the extent to which bank policies implementing money laundering and terrorist financing program requirements have contributed to debanking and will take appropriate action as needed," the report said.
Allegations of politically motivated debanking have been a particular focus of the current Trump administration.
Earlier this year, Trump filed a $5 billion lawsuit against JPMorgan Chase and CEO Jamie Dimon, alleging the bank closed several of his accounts for political reasons. JPMorgan, the largest US bank, has denied closing accounts on political or religious grounds.
He has also accused other lenders, including Bank of America, the country's second-biggest lender by assets, of debanking him in early 2025.
(Reporting by Pete Schroeder in Washington and Manya Saini in Bengaluru; Editing by Tasim Zahid)
