Capital One Closed Trump-Linked Accounts in 2021 Over Money-Laundering Concerns
In 2021, Capital One closed 385 accounts linked to Donald Trump and his businesses after flagging suspicious financial activity consistent with money laundering. The closures occurred months after the bank was fined $390 million by FinCEN for failing to maintain an effective anti-money laundering (AML) program from 2008 through 2014. Trump's trust, companies and Eric Trump filed a lawsuit against Capital One in 2025, alleging political bias following the January 6 Capitol attack. The bank defended its actions as necessary for compliance with AML regulations after extensive internal review. Debanking—closing accounts due to legal or regulatory risk—is common among financial institutions but often lacks transparency. Capital One's case highlights broader concerns about banks closing high-risk customer accounts, especially when those customers are politically prominent.
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Topics: banking debanking legal action money laundering