Comptroller of the Currency Jonathan V. Gould today issued the following statement in support of the Executive Order, “Guaranteeing Fair Banking For All Americans,” issued by President Donald J. Trump:
Fair access to financial services is a fundamental principle of the U.S. banking system. It is unacceptable for banks to discriminate against any customer on the basis of political or religious beliefs or lawful business activities. Today’s Executive Order affirms that banks should provide access to financial services based on individualized, objective, and risk-based analyses.
The OCC has already taken initial steps to depoliticize the federal banking system consistent with the President’s Executive Order. Earlier this year, the OCC removed references to reputation risk from its handbooks and guidance documents. Soon it will propose a rule removing these same references from its regulations. The OCC will also commence a review to assess the extent to which the institutions it supervises have or are engaged in politicized or unlawful debanking and take remedial actions if appropriate. The OCC is exploring additional steps to ensure politicized or unlawful debanking is never repeated.
