JPMorgan Chase's closure of cryptocurrency company executives' accounts could lead to the "debanking" of the crypto industry

Houston Morgan, a senior executive at Shape Shift, said JPMorgan had abruptly closed his business accounts on Friday and had informed him that his personal accounts would be closed this week as well, citing "protection of Chase's Financial Institution Group". Morgan said the process went without warning, was not asked for additional information, and had no chance to appeal. The incident follows the closure of Strike CEO Jack Mallers' account, which has renewed concerns about the "debanking" of the US crypto industry. A JPMorgan spokesperson declined to comment on the Mallers case, but stressed that the bank serves cryptocurrency companies across the industry.
While it is unclear why Mallers' accounts were closed, a source close to the bank explained that the system in place to date, which combines automated monitoring and human audits to identify potential anti-money laundering problems, favours closing accounts rather than keeping them, reflecting the bank's longstanding culture of "over-caution".
While JPMorgan still reserves the right to make decisions about individual bank relationships, the disclosures have raised concerns that banks may continue to engage in discriminatory practices against the cryptocurrency industry. They have also renewed calls for reform of the current AML/CFT reporting system, which many see as outdated and prone to discriminating against customers and the industry. Independent journalist Lola Leetz said that unless the Bank Secrecy Act and the global AML/CFT framework are overhauled, the flow of banking business will not stop.