JPMorgan denied it debanked former Kansas governor – Business News
JPMorgan Chase denied claims that it “debanked” former Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback over his conservative and spiritual views, based on a report Thursday.
The bank stated it didn’t obtain info it had requested from Brownback earlier than it closed the account, based on an October 2022 letter seen by Reuters.
Brownback, a Republican who chairs the National Committee for Religious Freedom, has accused JPMorgan of shuttering the account in 2022 on spiritual grounds.
Sam Brownback at a National Day of Prayer occasion. Jason Alatidd/Topeka Capital-Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK
He alleged the nation’s largest bank refuses business to conservatives and spiritual teams.
“We don’t discontinue client relationships because of a religious or political affiliation, and we didn’t with your account,” Larry Thode, a managing director at JPMorgan, wrote in a beforehand unreported letter from October 2022.
“The information your organization gave to us at account opening triggered our request for additional information. That had nothing to do with any religious affiliation.”
He added that the bank didn’t receive the required info earlier than the account was closed as a result of its workers have been unable to attach with Brownback’s employees.
“The most suspicious thing about our case is that even after their October 2022 letter Chase continued to change their rationale for closing our account,” Brownback informed The Post in a assertion.
A spokesperson for Brownback stated the bank nonetheless has not addressed why the account was closed simply three weeks after opening, and that the group was not given 60 days to reply to the bank’s inquiries.
“The regulatory and supervisory environment governing banking – including our AML [anti-money laundering] regime – is in immediate need of reform, and we look forward to supporting this Administration to do that,” a JPMorgan spokesperson informed The Post.
Thode didn’t instantly reply to The Post’s request for remark.
JPMorgan Chase stated it didn’t obtain info it had requested earlier than it closed the account, based on a letter. Christopher Sadowski
Meanwhile, President Trump signed an government order Thursday that may slap banks that discriminate in opposition to conservatives with fines and different penalties.
It can even retroactively goal financial establishments which have closed accounts on political or spiritual grounds prior to now.
“President Trump is addressing unfair banking practices and protecting the American people from being denied access to financial services due to their political party or religious beliefs,” White House spokesperson Harrison Fields informed The Post.
Earlier this week, Trump claimed that JPMorgan, Bank of America and different banks “discriminated against me very badly” after they refused to just accept more than $1 billion of his deposits.
President Trump is poised to crack down on debanking practices in an government order Thursday. REUTERS
For months, the president has railed in opposition to debanking practices.
He blasted Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan earlier this yr, who he stated “was kissing my ass when I was president” however wouldn’t settle for the deposits after his first time period ended.
Brownback alleged JPMorgan abruptly shuttered the spiritual committee’s account in 2022.
“When I tried to deposit a donation at a local Chase branch, I was informed the bank had closed our account — without giving me any reason why,” Brownback wrote in an op-ed for The Post earlier this yr.
“Over the course of the next year, a stream of Chase employees offered up no fewer than four conflicting explanations for why it had canceled our account,” he added.
Banks are required to hold out due diligence beneath anti-money laundering applications, together with particular tips for charities and non-profit organizations, just like the National Committee for Religious Freedom.
