The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) said on Wednesday that nine banks maintained practices and policies between 2020 and 2025 that denied or limited access to financial services because of political or religious beliefs.
The banks identified include TD, JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Citigroup, Wells Fargo, U.S. Bancorp, Capital One and PNC. Comptroller of the Currency Jonathan Gould said in a statement: "Today's report provides irrefutable evidence that the nation's largest banks have denied, debanked and discriminated against customers and lawful businesses."
The OCC found that broad reputational-risk policies lacked clear standards and objective criteria. It said the banks had policies restricting access to financial services for certain industries, including oil and gas, coal, firearms and ammunition, and digital assets.
As an example concerning TD, the OCC said the bank required the escalation of loan requests from a non-profit organisation that promotes pro-life views.
The OCC announced no penalties but said it is assessing further regulatory and supervisory changes. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau said it will "fully investigate" whether the lenders complied with federal consumer financial laws.
JPMorgan said the report covers a limited number of historical interactions across its nearly 90 million customers and small businesses. TD did not respond to a request for comment, The Globe and Mail reported. The OCC launched its review last year after President Trump requested an investigation, the newspaper said.
Related: TD Bank received approval for C$10 billion Canadian share buyback