America’s Biggest Bank Admits Closing Trump’s Accounts After Jan. 6 — President Fires Back With $5 Billion Lawsuit Claiming Retaliation

For the first time, JPMorgan Chase & Co. acknowledged in legal filings that it closed bank accounts held by President Donald Trump and several of his businesses in the aftermath of the Jan. 6, 2021 Capitol riot. The disclosure, embedded in court filings this week in a lawsuit Trump filed, adds a new dimension to a dispute that has broader implications for how financial institutions handle politically prominent clients.

“In February 2021, JPMorgan informed Plaintiffs that certain accounts maintained with JPMorgan’s CB and PB would be closed,” wrote former JPMorgan chief administrative officer Dan Wilkening in a court document. “CB” refers to the bank’s commercial banking division, and “PB” refers to its private bank.

Until this week, the bank had never publicly admitted in writing that it closed Trump’s accounts in connection with the aftermath of the U.S. Capitol attack; previous comments were limited to general statements about why banks close client relationships.

Trump’s lawsuit, filed in Florida state court in January, seeks $5 billion in damages, alleging that JPMorgan and its CEO Jamie Dimon unlawfully “de-banked” him, his family and affiliated businesses for political reasons — effectively cutting off access to banking services and disrupting operations.

According to the complaint, Trump’s legal team argues that account closures were retaliatory and discriminatory, contending that JPMorgan placed Trump and his entities on a reputational “blacklist” that could hinder future financial access. Their filings assert that bank letters informing Trump of closures offered no specific justification beyond the bank’s discretion.

“In a devastating concession that proves President Trump’s entire claim, JPMorgan Chase admitted to unlawfully and intentionally de-banking President Trump, his family, and his businesses, causing overwhelming financial harm,” Trump’s lawyers said in a statement included with the court filings this week.

JPMorgan has characterized the lawsuit differently. In earlier filings and public statements, the bank said the lawsuit “has no merit,” adding that it does not close accounts for political or religious reasons but does so when they “create legal or regulatory risk for the company.” The bank further stated, “We regret having to do so but often rules and regulatory expectations lead us to do so.”

In court filings, JPMorgan has also sought to transfer the case to a New York federal court, noting that the accounts in question were held there.

The banking giant further challenged Trump’s inclusion of Dimon as a defendant, calling that aspect of the suit “fraudulent” and arguing it was a tactic to keep the case in Florida state court rather than allow a federal transfer.

The dispute unfolds against a backdrop of increased attention on “debanking,” a term describing when banks sever client relationships or deny services — a topic that has drawn political scrutiny in recent years, especially among conservative circles. Trump and other conservative figures have framed such actions as unfair or politically motivated, although financial institutions maintain that compliance and risk considerations drive their decisions.

Trump’s legal action against JPMorgan is not his first against major financial institutions; in March 2025, the Trump Organization sued Capital One, alleging similar “debanking” practices. Those claims are still pending.

Featured image by Krisztian Bocsi/Bloomberg via Getty Images