Are big banks chasing away religious organizations?

Washington Examiner ^ | October 6, 2022 | Sam Brownback

[karpov]

Testifying before the Senate last month, JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon spoke eloquently of what a wonderful country we live in and about the freedoms we enjoy.

...

While I was glad to hear Dimon speak proudly of America and our freedoms, I am concerned that his bank fails to live up to such lofty ideals. He referred to religious freedom as a “foundational belief,” but his bank recently decided to close the account of the National Committee for Religious Freedom, a nonpartisan, faith-based nonprofit organization dedicated to defending the right of everyone in America to live one's faith freely.

...

After organizing the NCRF as a nonprofit group, our executive director and I opened a bank account at JPMorgan Chase & Co . We chose Chase because of its national footprint and the multigenerational banking relationships our team had with the bank. Our experience was initially very positive.

However, three weeks after opening our nonprofit business checking account, we received a letter notifying us that Chase had decided to “end their relationship” with the National Committee for Religious Freedom and that our account would be closed

...

What shocked and surprised me the most was when someone from Chase eventually reached out to our executive director and informed him that it would be willing to reconsider doing business with the NCRF if we would provide our donor list, a list of political candidates we intended to support, and a full explanation of the criteria by which we would endorse and support those candidates. It was entirely inappropriate to ask for this type of information. Does Chase ask every customer what politicians they support and why before deciding whether or not to accept them as a customer?

[Maine Mariner]

I am sure there are plenty of smaller banks that would love their business.

[DoodleBob]

Does Chase ask every customer what politicians they support and why before deciding whether or not to accept them as a customer?

Blame the money launderers.

There are numerous regulations banks must follow regarding commercial enterprises and consumer customers. For example, the documentation requirements are high for PEPs (politically exposed persons) like Mr. Brownback and, for some not-for-profit entities, similar heightened standards apply.

This is all a result of banks being used by bad guys to, among other things, launder money. In response to that practice, banks are required to ask certain customers for a pile of documentation. Parenthetically, The Patriot Act underpins a lot of these regulations, and - surprise - Sen Brownback voted in favor of that.

Is Chase really against this NFP? I don't know. Perhaps Chase's risk appetite for PEPs is lower than that embodied in this entity. But if someone did their homework first and evinced an understanding of banking regulation - especially someone who voted for some of this stuff - they'd have more credibility.

[Boogieman]

“Is Chase really against this NFP?”

Chase has consistently been at the forefront of the left’s push to use private businesses to “deplatform” the left’s ideological opponents.