The US House Committee is investigating the debanking of individuals and businesses in the crypto industry, citing potential political bias.
Tech leaders, including Brian Armstrong and Marc Andreessen, have shared their experiences with sudden account closures.
On January 24, the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform said it is looking into the banning of certain people and businesses from banks, particularly in the cryptocurrency and blockchain areas, because of possible political bias.
Chairman James Comer requested information from tech leaders like Marc Andreessen, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong, and Uniswap Labs CEO Hayden Adams to understand the full scope of the problem. Comer said:
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 investigation comes after Andreessen’s statements that 30 tech leaders lost access to banking because of their political beliefs.
The study looks at the rising worries in the cryptocurrency world, where leaders have said that their bank accounts are being closed unexpectedly.
For example, Hayden Adams said his accounts were closed without warning, while Armstrong claimed that former SEC Chair Gary Gensler tried to “unlawfully end” cryptocurrency.
Paul Grewal from Coinbase and David Marcus, the CEO of Lightspark, raised concerns about financial regulators going after the business.
The committee is looking into whether financial institutions started these acts or if they were pushed by unspoken rules from regulators. Past events, like Operation Chokepoint during Obama’s time in office, have led people to question whether regulatory power can be used to target certain businesses that are not favored.
New information for the investigation came from Melania Trump’s book, where she shared that her family lost their bank account because of political issues. Kristin Smith from the Blockchain Association spoke out against this practice, saying it hurts innovation and entrepreneurs by making it harder for them to get important banking services.
Comer stressed that the aim of the investigation is to look into how these acts harm the overall economy.
