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The Trump administration has been stepping up pro-crypto regulation in recent months and is now moving to curb banking discrimination against crypto firms.<\/p>\n
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According to a Tuesday Wall Street Journal report<\/a>, the White House is preparing an executive order aimed at investigating and cracking down on financial institutions that deny services to crypto companies based on regulatory pressure or political bias.<\/p>\n The draft order, which could reportedly be signed this week, comes in direct response to what the crypto industry has described as \u2018Operation Chokepoint 2.0,\u2019 a coordinated effort under the previous administration to push banks to quietly sever ties with crypto businesses.\u00a0<\/p>\n <\/p>\n If signed, federal banking regulators will be required to investigate whether firms violated consumer protection, antitrust, or credit access laws when cutting ties with crypto-linked clients.\u00a0Institutions found guilty could face penalties such as fines, consent decrees, or even DOJ referrals in extreme cases.<\/p>\n During the Biden era, the crypto industry faced significant pressure from regulators, championed by the US Securities and Exchange Commission under former Chair Gary Gensler\u2019s leadership.\u00a0<\/p>\n The pressure soon escalated,\u00a0as multiple federal agencies, including the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and Department of Justice (DOJ), allegedly encouraged banks to cut off services to crypto-related businesses.\u00a0This was often done behind closed doors, and with no clear explanations to those affected.<\/p>\n The coordinated effort was first called out<\/a> by venture capitalist Nic Carter in 2023, who found that regulators, under the direction of the Biden administration, were using their influence over the banking system to wage a quiet but aggressive crackdown on the crypto industry.<\/p>\n \u201cThe US government is using the banking sector to organize a sophisticated, widespread crackdown against the crypto industry,\u201d Carter explained. \u201cThe Biden administration is now executing what appears to be a coordinated plan that spans multiple agencies to discourage banks from dealing with crypto firms. It applies to both traditional banks who would serve crypto clients, and crypto-first firms aiming to get bank charters.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n Industry members like Kraken founder Jesse Powell and Tyler Winklevoss from Gemini have shared personal stories of being caught in the crackdown, explaining<\/a> how their companies and groups affiliated with them were debanked with no clear justification.<\/p>\n \u201cI was debanked because I\u2019m in crypto, as was Gemini,\u201d Winklevoss wrote<\/a> in an X post.<\/p>\n\u2018Operation Chokepoint 2.0\u2019 explained<\/h2>\n
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