Written by Lananh Nguyen and Ross Kerber
(Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday accused the chief executive of Bank of America and JPMorgan Chase of not providing banking services to conservatives, echoing Republican complaints about the industry.
The broadside for Wall Street banks comes after congressional Republicans and Republican-led states accused some institutions of "woke capitalism," as well as debanking gunmen, fossil fuel companies and other institutions seen as aligned with the political right. Some of the institutions that woke up capitalism.
Both banks denied on Thursday that they made banking decisions based on politics.
"I want you to start opening up the banks to conservatives because a lot of conservatives are complaining about banks not allowing them to do business in banks, including a place called Bank of America," Trump said on Monday.
"You're doing it wrong," he said in a speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, via video link. Trump cited no evidence of wrongdoing in his questions and answers with company leaders and CEOs. or specific details.
He also cited JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon. "You and Jamie and everybody, I want you to open the banks to conservatives," Trump said.
In recent years, various financial firms in the United States and elsewhere have tried to respond to growing investor and customer concerns about issues such as climate change and workforce diversity.
But institutions are simultaneously facing complaints that they unfairly cut off conservative viewpoints without violating their policies, such as bans on promoting violence.
Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan did not immediately address the claim in comments following Trump's speech, but he expressed appreciation for the upcoming World Cup against the United States.
"We welcome conservatives," a Bank of America spokesman said in an email.
"We must follow extensive government rules and regulations, which sometimes result in decisions to exit client relationships. We never close books for political reasons and there are no political litmus tests."
JPMorgan Chase & Co., the largest U.S. lender, also said it would never close the account for political reasons.
"We are following the law and guidance from regulators who have long said Washington's current framework must address issues," it said.
"We welcome the opportunity to work with the new administration and Congress in a way that removes ambiguity from the regulations while preserving our nation's ability to address financial crime," a JPMorgan spokesman said in an email.
Singling out specific companies is not unprecedented for Trump, who made a career of accusing Boeing and Ford of wrongdoing during his first term while praising others for his political goals.
Some in the banking industry say the criticism could lead to some changes.
Greg Baer, ​​president and CEO of the Bank Policy Institute, a trade group, said Trump's diagnosis was that many bank delistings occurred due to anti-money laundering and "reputational risk" regimes administered by federal banking agencies.
"We look forward to working with the government to resolve this issue and enable banks to provide more services to more customers," he said.
Raymond James analyst Ed Mills said it was highly unusual for a U.S. president to call out financial institutions by name, but said Trump was concerned as his administration prepares new regulations. Pu's comments may be important.
"These comments may be an early indicator that their business is expanding to cover some of his preferred industries," Mills said.
Complaints from Conservatives
In 2022, JPMorgan came under fire for shutting down a nonprofit founded by Sam Brownback, the U.S. ambassador for international religious freedom. The bank expressed a desire to obtain "confidential donor information" from the organization, according to a 2024 report from the Kansas Attorney General.
JPMorgan declined to discuss the incident in detail, but a representative said Thursday that it does not discriminate based on political or religious views and that it was a business decision.
JPMorgan won credit from conservative groups last year for abandoning demands from merchants using its Wepay service not to accept payments related to accusations of racism or sexual harassment.
It also began using the language it uses to serve customers "regardless of political, social or religious views."
So far, investors have not broadly backed the move. At Bank of America, a shareholder resolution last year calling for a report on the "politicized risks of debanking" received support from just 3% of the vote, which was not enough to resubmit.
(Reporting by Lananh Nguyen, Caitlin Webber and Katharine Jackson; Additional reporting by Ross Kerber, Pete Schroeder, Nupur Anand, Heather Timmons and Isla Binnie; Writing by Susan Heave and Saeed; Writing by Susan Heave and Saeed;