JPMorgan Admits Closing Trump’s Accounts After January 6 Capitol Attack
JPMorgan Chase has, for the first time, acknowledged that it closed the bank accounts of former President Donald Trump and several of his businesses following the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol. The admission comes amid Trump’s $5 billion lawsuit against the bank over alleged “debanking.”
Court filings this week reveal that in February 2021, JPMorgan informed Trump that certain accounts in its commercial and private banking divisions would be closed. Until now, the bank had never formally confirmed in writing that it ended the accounts, previously speaking only hypothetically about reasons for account closures while citing privacy laws.
Trump’s lawsuit, originally filed in Florida state court, claims the closures were politically motivated and disrupted his business operations. The filings also allege that JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon failed to follow up after Trump personally raised the matter. Trump’s legal team further claims that the bank placed him and his companies on a reputational “blacklist,” preventing them from opening accounts at other institutions—a practice the bank says it will respond to once defined.
While JPMorgan maintains that the lawsuit lacks merit, Trump’s lawyers called the bank’s acknowledgment a “devastating concession,” asserting it proves the president’s claims and highlights the financial harm caused by debanking.
Debanking—when banks close accounts or deny services—is increasingly controversial. Conservatives argue that institutions have used vague “reputational risk” policies to cut off clients for political reasons, a practice regulators have recently moved to limit. Trump has filed similar claims against other banks, including Capital One, which remains under litigation.
The JPMorgan admission marks a significant development in a case that sits at the intersection of politics, banking, and financial access in the U.S., drawing national attention to the debate over whether banks can lawfully sever ties with clients for political or reputational reasons.
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