The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) has found that the nine largest banks in the United States denied financial services to customers based on their political, religious, or social beliefs, according to a report released on Wednesday. The OCC's review examined nearly 100,000 complaints and received about 50,000 documents from the banks, including JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Citibank, Wells Fargo, U.S. Bank, Capital One, PNC Bank, TD Bank, and BMO Bank, analyzing their policies and individual customer decisions.
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The report highlighted that these banks' internal guidelines often lacked objective, risk-based criteria, which led to the exclusion of legitimate customers and businesses due to their ideological stances rather than financial risk assessments. It noted a systematic approach within the banking sector to limit access to financial services for politically sensitive industries, including oil and gas exploration, coal mining, firearms manufacturing, detention facility operations, and tobacco or e-cigarettes.
Comptroller of the Currency Jonathan Gould stated, "Today's report provides irrefutable evidence that the nation's largest banks have denied, debanked, and discriminated against customers and lawful businesses." He emphasized that Americans should have access to financial services irrespective of their beliefs or political views.
The banks involved are reportedly reassessing how reputation risk impacts their decisions regarding customer acceptance and termination. Some have indicated that they are reducing reliance on reputation risk in favor of evaluating it alongside other financial risks such as credit risk and funds related to money laundering and terrorism financing. In response, the Bank Policy Institute, representing the banks, expressed support for clear standards that enhance access while maintaining sound risk management.