The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency says nine of the largest U.S. banks denied or limited services to customers over political or religious beliefs, and crypto was among the affected industries. The regulator says it will assess further changes to the rules governing the largest banks.
The nine largest U.S. banks, including JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America and Citibank, denied or limited banking access to crypto firms and founders, according to an Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) report. The OCC said it reviewed 100,000 debanking complaints across top banks between 2020 and 2025.
Nine banks, six industries
The Daily Hodl reports that all nine banks had such policies between 2020 and September of 2025. Besides the three named above, the list includes Wells Fargo Bank, U.S. Bank, Capital One, PNC Bank, TD Bank and BMO Bank.
Crypto was one of six industries affected. The report also says the banks restricted entire industries, including oil and gas exploration, coal mining, firearms, detention facilities, tobacco and digital assets.
Regulators respond
Comptroller Jonathan Gould said the agency is working to end the practice. According to Gould, "Access to banking should be based on financial risk, not political beliefs".
Gould also said he is not confident that the banks' own efforts will be enough. As a result, the OCC will assess further changes to the regulatory and supervisory framework for the largest banks.
Nic Carter, founder of VC firm Castle Island Ventures, called the report a bombshell, and Bitwise CIO Matt Hougan called the debanking policy disgraceful and dangerous.
Banks still push back on crypto
Meanwhile, some crypto firms have gained entry into the banking system. Ripple and Circle, for example, received trust bank charter licenses to expand their stablecoin and crypto custody operations.
However, banks and Senate Democrats are pushing against that trend, and one banking group sued the OCC over the charter approvals.
Sources: AMBCrypto, The Daily Hodl
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