Trump sues JPMorgan Chase, Jamie Dimon for debanking him after Jan. 6

by · UPI

Jan. 22 (UPI) -- President Donald Trump sued JPMorgan Chase bank and its CEO Jamie Dimon Thursday for closing his accounts in 2021 after the Jan. 6 capitol riots.

Trump alleges the closure of the accounts was done for political reasons after decades of being a customer.

JPMorgan denied Thursday that the closures were political and suggested they were because of federal rules and regulations.

Trump and other plaintiffs in the case -- business entities related to him -- are seeking $5 billion in damages. The suit was filed in state court in Miami, Fla.

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"Plaintiffs are confident that JPMC's unilateral decision came about as a result of political and social motivations, and JPMC's unsubstantiated, 'woke' beliefs that it needed to distance itself from President Trump and his conservative political views," the suit said.

"In essence, JPMC debanked Plaintiffs' Accounts because it believed that the political tide at the moment favored doing so," the suit says.

It says Chase never explained why the bank was closing the accounts, but that the "plaintiffs have subsequently learned that they were debanked as a result of political discrimination against President Trump, the Trump Organization, its affiliated entities, and/or the Trump family."

The suit does not say exactly what the plaintiffs learned.

It also said Trump contacted Dimon directly to ask about the account closures, and Dimon said he would get back to him about it, "but, ultimately, never did."

Chase's "reckless decision is leading a growing trend by financial institutions in the United States of America to cut off a consumer's access to banking services if their political views contradict with those of the financial institution," the suit said.

The suit also claims that Dimon and JPMorgan Chase published Trump's name and the Trump Organization and the Trump family on a "blacklist." The alleged blacklist is accessible to other banks "and is comprised of individuals and entities that have a history of malfeasant acts and are otherwise non-compliant with applicable banking rules and regulations," the suit says, but that the plaintiffs "have always complied" with banking rules and regulations.

The suit alleges trade libel and breach of implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing by JPMorgan.

JPMorgan Chase said it will fight the case in court.

"While we regret President Trump has sued us, we believe the suit has no merit," JPMorgan said in a statement. "We respect the President's right to sue us and our right to defend ourselves -- that's what courts are for."

The statement said the bank doesn't close accounts for political reasons.

"We do close accounts because they create legal or regulatory risk for the company. We regret having to do so but often rules and regulatory expectations lead us to do so. We have been asking both this Administration and prior administrations to change the rules and regulations that put us in this position, and we support the Administration's efforts to prevent the weaponization of the banking sector."

Chase's decision centered on whether Trump posed a financial risk, said Peter Conti-Brown, a financial regulation and legal studies professor at the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania, to CNN.

"President Trump's lawsuit is frivolous," Conti-Brown said. "The president's record of stiffing his business partners and evading his responsibilities as a debtor is long and storied. No bank should be forced to do business with a financial risk like that."