For years, crypto companies have faced account closures and denials of banking services under the banner of “de-risking.” Many in the industry see this as part of a coordinated policy effort to suppress digital assets, often referred to as Operation ChokePoint 2.0.
When President Donald Trump’s pro-crypto team came to power, many believed this era of debanking would end. His campaign promises and early policy steps signaled a more welcoming stance toward digital assets, raising expectations that banks would ease restrictions on crypto businesses.
However, recent developments suggest the practice persists. Last week, Andreessen Horowitz partner Alex Rampell warned that major banks are now engaging in what he called Operation ChokePoint 3.0—squeezing fintech and crypto apps by raising fees for accessing account data or transferring funds to platforms like Coinbase and Robinhood.
Supporting these concerns, Unicoin CEO Alex Konanykhin told Cointelegraph that U.S. banks continue to close accounts for crypto firms without explanation, despite political pressure to stop. “We know about it first-hand, as Unicoin and its subsidiaries have been de-banked by several banks,” he said, naming Citibank, Chase, Wells Fargo, City National Bank of Florida, and TD Bank among those that have cut ties. Four of those closures reportedly happened this year alone. Konanykhin believes this points to a “large-scale nationwide operation.”
Unicoin—a publicly reporting company with six years of audited financials and more than 4,000 shareholders—has been hit hard by the trend, which Konanykhin says is “highly disruptive and damaging” to U.S. crypto firms, cutting them off from basic financial services and undermining the domestic industry.
On Thursday, Bloomberg reported that President Trump will soon sign an executive order instructing federal banking regulators to identify and penalize financial institutions that engage in debanking. The order is expected to require a review of complaint data and direct banks under Small Business Administration oversight to reinstate clients who were wrongfully denied services.
Konanykhin expressed optimism about the move, noting that Trump “knows the pain of de-banking first-hand” and appears committed to stopping what he called a form of “economic warfare” against American businesses. He believes ending the practice could help the U.S. crypto sector regain global leadership, potentially becoming as influential as Hollywood in entertainment or Silicon Valley in tech.
Still, meaningful reform will depend on how new rules are written, said Elizabeth Blickley, a partner at Fox Rothschild’s Tax Controversy & Litigation Practice. While Trump has directed agencies and Congress to explore integrating crypto into mainstream finance, she cautioned that the outcome will hinge on the precise wording of regulations and laws.
She highlighted the recently signed Genius Act, which gives the Federal Reserve’s Stablecoin Certification Review Committee 180 days to develop a regulatory framework. But she also warned that most bills in Congress never advance, and those that do often face legal challenges from both sides of the debate. “A regulation may technically comply with the President’s request or a law may pass, yet still have minimal effect or unintended consequences based purely on word choice,” she noted.
For now, Blickley expects banks to maintain their cautious stance toward crypto until new rules clearly mitigate perceived risks. “It’s all about making risk-averse entities and people feel like crypto is less of a risk,” she said.