President Trump is reportedly set to sign an executive order directing banking regulators as soon as this week to penalize financial institutions that disengage from business relationships with cryptocurrency firms or conservative clientele.
Key Takeaways:
- The drafted executive order aims to direct agencies to investigate whether banks violated the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, antitrust or consumer protection laws by cutting off crypto or politically aligned clients.
- Banks who violate could face monetary penalties, consent decrees or other enforcement actions. Also, internal policies enabling debanking are to be abolished.
- Industry leaders see this as a potential watershed moment, reversing alleged Operation Chokepoint 2.0, and may unlock broader access to banking for the crypto industry.
Multiple sources, particularly blockchain media platforms including CoinTelegraph and The Block, report U.S. President Donal Trump is preparing to sign an executive order aimed at ending so-called “debanking” of crypto firms and conservative-aligned customers. According to a draft seen by The Wall Street Journal, it instructs bank regulators to investigate whether any financial institution violated the Equal Credit Opportunity Act or other consumer protection and antitrust laws by terminating services based on ideology or crypto involvement.
CoinTelegraph’s latest report noted that the proposed law would also mandate that agencies eliminate their internal policies that may have prompted banks to reject or cut ties with such clients. Agencies like the Small Business Administration are tasked to review loan guarantees and bank practices tied to the SBA program. However, no banks are named nor specified, but the draft references specific incidents, such as Bank of America closing a Ugandan Christian group’s account under a policy against servicing small overseas businesses.
Industry voices are watching closely
Analyst and investor Paul Barron posted in X about the executive order and highlighted its benefits and new opportunities for the crypto industry, noting that it would “force every major bank to embrace crypto companies.”
Binance Founder Changpeng “CZ” Zhao, on the other hand, took also emphasized the executive order’s advantage for crypto, saying that it “opens banking for crypto internationally.”
However, Legal experts have raised questions. Some argue the executive order may exceed presidential authority, as political affiliation is not a protected class under existing civil rights statutes, and that Trump cannot create statutory rights via executive fiat.
Price & Market Impact
As of writing (12;00 PM UTC), Bitcoin (BTC) is valued at $114,713 with a 24-hour gain of about 0.30%, while Ethereum (ETH) $3,664, gaining approximately 2.9% over the past 24 hours, according to the latest market statistics from TradingView.
The crypto market’s modest uptick suggests cautious optimism particularly for assets tied to crypto exchange access and stablecoin liquidity. Notably, the move did not trigger a double‑digit surge, but markets remain sensitive to policy shifts that could ease banking access for firms like Coinbase or Kraken.
Stablecoins and platforms with close ties to traditional finance infrastructure may see steady inflows if banking access improves.
What’s Next
If approved and successfully turned into a law, this order may signal a major shift in U.S. financial policy, particularly for the crypto industry and conservative-aligned businesses. Moving forward, markets are looking forward whether the penalties are actually imposed and whether major banks reverse de-risking policies, as well as whether the DOJ advances investigations into past debanking incidents. Despite long process of legal and legislative debates ahead, this development indicates a significant improvement toward banking access and regulatory clarity.
Summary
President Donald Trump is expected to sign an executive order instructing federal regulators to penalize banks that “debank” cryptocurrency firms or conservative-aligned organizations. The order would direct agencies to investigate financial institutions under consumer protection, antitrust, and Equal Credit Opportunity laws. It also calls for removal of internal bank policies that may restrict access based on ideology or crypto affiliation. The move is seen as a reversal of “Operation Chokepoint 2.0.” Market response has been cautiously optimistic, with BTC and ETH slightly up. Legal experts remain divided over the scope of executive authority.
