The Department of Justice reportedly sent subpoenas to some of the biggest American banks. Among those who received the subpoenas were JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, and Wells Fargo, The Wa
The Department of Justice reportedly sent subpoenas to some of the biggest American banks.
Among those who received the subpoenas were JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, and Wells Fargo, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing anonymous sources.
Jeanine Pirro of the United States Attorney's Office within the DOJ is reportedly seeking information on whether the banks improperly closed accounts or "debanked" clients for political reasons.
Related: World's largest bank reportedly chases crypto trading amid debanking claims
The subpoenas follow U.S. President Donald Trump's attempts to surface evidence that banks discriminated against conservatives and politically sensitive industries, including his own family.
Trump has said he was shut out of accounts at JPMorgan and Bank of America after his first term ended with the January 2021 Capitol riot.
In August, he signed an executive order instructing regulators to examine "politicized or unlawful debanking" and to impose penalties where warranted.
The legal pressure has since spilled into the courts. Trump personally sued JPMorgan and Chief Executive Jamie Dimon in January, alleging his accounts were closed for political reasons.
The Trump family separately sued Capital One last year, claiming it moved to shut more than 300 Trump-affiliated business accounts in 2021.
Pirro's office reportedly launched the investigation independently and is coordinating with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC).
TheStreet Roundtablereached out to JPMorgan, Bank of America, Wells Fargo, Capital One and Pirro's office.
Wells Fargo declined to comment on the matter. Others have yet to respond at the time of publication.
The debanking fight has long overlapped with the crypto industry, which says lenders quietly cut off founders and firms for years.
In November 2025, Strike CEO Jack Mallers said on X that JPMorgan abruptly closed his accounts, citing "concerning activity" and the Bank Secrecy Act without further explanation.
Crypto leaders have dubbed the pattern "Operation Chokepoint 2.0," echoing an Obama-era effort that targeted industries deemed high-risk.
Yet the same institutions are now moving onto blockchain themselves.
In December 2025, Bank of America recommended a 1% to 4% crypto allocation to clients.
Meanwhile, JPMorgan took its JPMD deposit token live for institutional clients on Base, Coinbase's Ethereum layer-2 network, in November 2025. Unlike a stablecoin, JPMD represents an actual dollar deposit held at the bank, redeemable through its own rails, and it has since expanded toward the Canton Network.
On June 5 this year, WSJ reported that both banks, along with Citi and Wells Fargo, are building a shared tokenized deposit network through The Clearing House, targeting a launch in the first half of 2027.
The system is designed to keep deposits inside the regulated banking system while offering crypto-like features such as instant, 24/7 settlement and programmable payments as a defense against stablecoins issued by firms such as Tether and Circle (NYSE: CRCL).
