US Office of the Comptroller of the Currency: Investigation finds that large banks still refuse to provide services to legitimate crypto businesses

Jinse Finance reported that a preliminary report from the US Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) found that nine of the largest US banks restricted or refused to provide services to businesses based on the customers' legitimate activities (such as the crypto industry) rather than financial risk. The OCC's review covered the business policies of JPMorgan, Bank of America, Citibank, Wells Fargo, U.S. Bank, Capital One Financial, PNC Bank, TD Bank, and Bank of Montreal. The OCC stated that at least some of these banks imposed special restrictions or enhanced scrutiny on clients from the above-mentioned industries, even when these businesses were legal. Comptroller of the Currency Jonathan V. Gould said the findings reflect the agency's commitment to "ending the weaponization of finance instigated by regulators or banks." He added that as the investigation continues, the OCC plans to hold banks accountable. The agency emphasized that the findings released on Thursday (December 11) are only the first phase of its investigation. While the OCC continues to assess whether banks are illegally discriminating against specific industries, thousands of complaints remain to be reviewed. The OCC has generally been relaxing its stance on cryptocurrency. Last month, the agency confirmed in an interpretive letter that major banks are officially allowed to hold cryptocurrency on their balance sheets to pay blockchain network fees for "other permissible" banking activities. On Tuesday (December 10), the regulator further stated that banks can process "riskless principal transactions" related to crypto assets.