White House Preps Order to Punish Banks That Discriminate Against Conservatives

The White House is preparing to step up pressure against big banks over perceived discrimination against conservatives and crypto companies with an executive order that threatens to fine lenders that drop customers for political reasons.

A draft of the executive order, which was viewed by The Wall Street Journal, directs bank regulators to investigate whether any financial institutions might have violated the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, antitrust laws or consumer financial-protection laws.

Violators could be subject to monetary penalties, consent decrees or other disciplinary measures, according to the draft.

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The draft order doesn’t name any specific banks but appears to refer to an instance where Bank of America was accused of shutting down the accounts of a Christian organization operating in Uganda based on the organization’s religious beliefs. The bank has said it closed the accounts because it doesn’t serve small businesses operating outside the U.S.

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Banks have been on edge about potential action by the Trump administration. The Journal reported in June that the administration was considering an executive order.

Conservatives for years have accused banks of denying them services on political or religious grounds, and cryptocurrency companies have said they were shut out of banking services under the Biden administration.

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Over the past several months, banks have moved to head off action by the federal government, meeting with Republican attorneys general and updating their policies to clearly state they don’t discriminate on the basis of political affiliation.

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