ANALYSIS: Debanking EOs Will Pit Prudence Against Compliance

Bank regulator enforcement actions have traditionally focused on “unsafe and unsound” practices. For bank regulators, this standard means that a bank has risked its business (and, if big enough, the stability of the US financial system) by not following best practices for balancing its business risk and for avoiding entanglement with crimes such as money laundering.

Under the Trump administration, federal banking regulators have a new focus: “debanking,” which is the practice of banks denying or terminating business with customers based on the customers beliefs, politics, or line of business.

As regulators engage in their anti-debanking effort in 2026, ...