Congress Begins Investigating Crypto Debanking and Operation Choke Point 2.0

The US House of Representatives is officially investigating whether leading crypto companies were secretly ‘debanked’ during the Biden administration.

On Friday, Rep. James Comer (R-KY), chairman of the House Oversight Committee, informed numerous founders and industry lobbyists that the investigation is already underway.

“The committee…is investigating improper debanking of individuals and entities based on political views or involvement in certain industries such as cryptocurrency and blockchain,” Comer wrote in a letter to Andreessen Horowitz co-founder Marc Andreessen, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong, and among others Uniswap founder Hayden Adams.

For years, top crypto officials have alleged that former President Joe Biden’s administration pressured U.S. banks to deny them service as a means to undermine the industry’s functioning.

Though numerous Biden officials — including former SEC head Gary Gensler — denied any involvement in such a plot “Operation Choke Point 2.0,” Recently disclosed correspondence between the FDIC and member banks appears to have coordinated pressure to freeze crypto adoption in the US banking system.

In November, Andreessen claimed to have direct knowledge of about during an appearance on Joe Rogan’s podcast 30 tech foundersmany of whom work in crypto, who suddenly lost access to banking services during Biden’s term in office.

Friday’s letter explicitly mentioned that interview, asking Andreessen – and others with similar knowledge – to come forward with specific details about this alleged debanking.

The letter also links the perceived economic persecution of crypto leaders to that of Trump family members, including Melania Trump. In her recent autobiography, quoted in today’s correspondence, the First Lady claimed that both she and her son, Barron, were also written off the bank during the Biden years.

“These examples are startling and the committee is investigating whether this debanking practice comes from the financial institutions themselves or from implicit or explicit pressure from government regulators,” Chairman Comer wrote.

Crypto leaders already seem eager to participate in the research.

“Legitimate crypto organizations and individuals need bank accounts to pay rent, pay taxes, and pay employees. Denying them these basic financial services is wrong and should never happen in the United States of America,” said Kristin Smith, CEO of the Blockchain Association, a crypto organization. lobby group, said in a statement shared with Declutter. “We would like to get to the bottom of this and put an end to this unlawful practice once and for all.”

Donald Trump’s return to the White House this week has already created a seismic shift in the federal government’s approach to crypto.

On Thursday, the president signed a sweeping crypto executive order that could soon pave the way for a strategic government crypto reserve. Hours later, the new Republican-controlled SEC arrived SAB 121 withdrawnan agency rule that discouraged US banks from holding crypto.

Even employees of the federal agencies accused of participating in Operation Choke Point 2.0 have become more outspoken in recent weeks. Earlier this month, FDIC Vice Chairman Travis Hill called in the call speech for the regulator to review its approach to digital assets and “put an end to all Choke Point-style tactics.”

Edited by Andrew Hayward