The following is from the House Oversight and Accountability Committee.
House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer (R-Ky.) is investigating recent reports of financial institutions debanking lawful American businesses and individuals based on political affiliation or involvement in industries viewed unfavorably by the Biden Administration. On The Joe Rogan Experience, renowned tech investor Marc Andreessen revealed that 30 tech founders had been debanked over the past four years, describing it as pressure against “political enemies” and “disfavored tech startups.” Chairman Comer has requested testimony from Andreessen and other tech leaders to understand why debanking occurs and how it impacts business operations.
“Several tech leaders within the cryptocurrency space have been outspoken about their experience being debanked,” wrote Chairman Comer. “In 2022, Uniswap Labs Founder and CEO Hayden Adams explained that his bank ‘closed my bank accounts with no notice or explanation,’ and that ‘I know many individuals and companies who have been similarly targeted simply for working in the crypto industry.’ Coinbase Co-Founder and CEO Brian Armstrong confirmed thirty tech founders were debanked, stating then-Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chair Gary Gensler, ‘tried to unlawfully kill our entire industry[.]’ Coinbase’s Chief Legal Officer, Paul Grewal, said, ‘[f]inancial regulators have used multiple tools at their disposal to try to cripple the digital-asset industry.’”
The Oversight Committee is investigating whether these practices originated from activists within financial institutions or from undue pressure by government regulators. The committee is revisiting its 2014 report exposing the Obama Administration’s “Operation Choke Point,” which sought to push politically disfavored companies out of the banking system. Recent evidence indicates that Melania Trump and Barron Trump were also debanked due to their political ties.
“These examples are startling, and the Committee is investigating whether this debanking practice originates from the financial institutions themselves or from either implicit or explicit pressure from government regulators,” continued Chairman Comer. “The Committee is interested in engaging individuals who have been debanked and, specifically, how these actions hurt innovation, entrepreneurs, and workers. Further, to better inform the Committee’s investigation, the Committee seeks to understand the financial institutions and regulators involved, the reasons tech founders were given as to why they were debanked, and how this overreach affected business operations.”
Read the full press release here.
Read Chairman James Comer’s letter to tech investor Marc Andreessen and other tech leaders here or below.
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
COMMITTEE ON OVERSIGHT AND GOVERNMENT REFORM
Washington, D.C. 20515
To:
Mr. Hayden Adams, Founder and CEO, Uniswap Labs
Mr. Marc Andreessen, Producer, AH Capital Management, LLC
Mr. Brian Armstrong, Co-Founder and CEO, Coinbase Global, Inc.
Mr. David Marcus, Co-Founder and CEO, Lightspark
Mr. Dave Ripley, CEO, Payward, Inc.
Ms. Kristin Smith, CEO, Blockchain Association
Dear Mr. Adams, Mr. Andreessen, Mr. Armstrong, Mr. Marcus, Mr. Ripley, and Ms. Smith,
The Committee on Oversight and Government Reform is investigating improper debanking of individuals and entities based on political viewpoints or involvement in certain industries such as cryptocurrency and blockchain. The Committee is interested in engaging with individuals and entities debanked by their financial institutions regarding their experience and the impact of debanking on their business operations.
Recently, investor and entrepreneur Marc Andreessen discussed how thirty tech founders were debanked because they held political positions unaligned with the former Biden Administration. According to reporting, this is not a new development. As leaders of digital asset corporations and associations, you—or individuals associated with your entities—have spoken publicly about debanking. Outside the tech industry, First Lady Melania Trump, in her recent memoir, also discussed how her preferred financial institution debanked her based on politics. The Committee seeks to understand whether this pattern of debanking stems from financial institutions themselves or from government actors.
The Committee previously released a staff report on Operation Choke Point, the Obama Administration’s playbook to politically force private entities to stop providing services, like banking, to certain industries. The report identified the Obama Administration Department of Justice’s overt effort “to ‘choke out’ companies the Administration consider[ed] a ‘high risk’ or otherwise objectionable, despite the fact that they are legal businesses.” The Committee is investigating whether Operation Choke Point laid the foundation for how the Biden Administration approached certain industries.
On November 26, 2024, Mr. Andreessen discussed the debanking of individuals “for having the wrong politics.” He stated that debanking “has been happening to a lot of the fintech entrepreneurs, [and] anybody trying to start any kind of new banking service because they’re trying to protect the big banks.” Nearly thirty tech founders have been debanked during the last four years, and Mr. Andreessen described this debanking as pressure against “political enemies” and “disfavored tech startups.”
Several tech leaders within the cryptocurrency space have been outspoken about their experience being debanked. In 2022, Uniswap Labs Founder and CEO Hayden Adams explained that his bank “closed my bank accounts with no notice or explanation,” and that “I know many individuals and companies who have been similarly targeted simply for working in the crypto industry.” Coinbase Co-Founder and CEO Brian Armstrong confirmed thirty tech founders were debanked, stating then-Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chair Gary Gensler, “tried to unlawfully kill our entire industry.” Coinbase’s Chief Legal Officer, Paul Grewal, said, “[f]inancial regulators have used multiple tools at their disposal to try to cripple the digital-asset industry.”
Another notable example of debanking comes from Mrs. Trump. In her memoir, she wrote:
“I was shocked and dismayed to learn that my long-time bank decided to terminate my account and deny my son, [Barron Trump,] the opportunity to open a new one. This decision appeared to be rooted in political discrimination, raising serious concerns about civil rights violations. It is troubling to see financial services withheld based on political affiliation.”
The Committee is interested in engaging individuals who have been debanked and, specifically, how these actions hurt innovation, entrepreneurs, and workers. Further, to better inform the Committee’s investigation, the Committee seeks to understand the financial institutions and regulators involved, the reasons tech founders were given as to why they were debanked, and how this overreach affected business operations.
The Committee on Oversight and Government Reform is the principal oversight committee of the U.S. House of Representatives and has broad authority to investigate “any matter” at “any time” under House Rule X. If you have any questions regarding this letter, please contact Clark Abourisk or Alan Brubaker with the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform at (202) 225-5074. Thank you for your prompt attention to this important matter.
Sincerely,
James Comer
Chairman, Committee on Oversight and Government Reform
cc: The Honorable Gerald Connolly, Ranking Member
Committee on Oversight and Government Reform

When people are de-banked, do they still get all their money first? I should imagine so.
That is one very interesting article.