Bank of America and JPMorgan, along with Wells Fargo, received DOJ subpoenas in a probe of alleged political debanking. Trump's executive order and a separate lawsuit add pressure.
The Justice Department sent subpoenas to Bank of America (BAC) and JPMorgan Chase, with Wells Fargo (WFC) also named in a Wall Street Journal report Wednesday. The subpoenas request information about whether the banks improperly closed accounts for political reasons, under a probe that examines possible violations of the Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery and Enforcement Act of 1989 and other laws.
Some subpoenas were sent last year, the WSJ report said. President Donald Trump signed an executive order on debanking in August 2025, directing federal banking regulators to review financial institutions for past or current policies encouraging debanking and to recommend remedial actions. The order also requires regulators to review supervisory and complaint data for instances of debanking based on religion and to refer such cases to the Attorney General.
Trump separately sued JPMorgan Chase and CEO Jamie Dimon for $5 billion in January, alleging the bank debanked him and some of his companies for political reasons in 2021. JPMorgan has said the lawsuit has no merit and that the bank does not close accounts for political or religious reasons, only for legal or regulatory risk.
For Bank of America and Wells Fargo, the probe adds to existing regulatory scrutiny. Alpha Scala's stock scores for BAC (65/100, Moderate) and WFC (51/100, Mixed) reflect the overhang from the investigation. Both banks have previously faced questions over account closure practices.
The debanking debate has intensified since Trump's executive order. Critics argue that banks sometimes close accounts based on political views, while the industry says closures are driven by compliance costs and regulatory risk.
Wells Fargo declined to comment on the WSJ report. Bank of America and JPMorgan did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The WSJ report described the subpoenas as "far-ranging" and covering multiple banks.
No timeline for the probe's conclusion has been disclosed.
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