Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) seems to have found common ground with President Trump and Republican lawmakers over “debanking” concerns, urging the president Tuesday to take action to prevent Americans from being improperly locked out of the financial system.
The top Democrat on the Senate Banking Committee called on Trump to support the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) efforts to combat debanking — the closure of bank accounts that financial institutions consider risky, often with little or no notice.
“I write to request that you take action on preventing the debanking of too many Americans across the country, including consumers unfairly locked out of the financial system due to overdraft fees, religious affiliation, or political beliefs,” Warren wrote in a letter to Trump.
“Your Administration can help to address this problem by supporting the ongoing efforts of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), the main agency in our government working to stop unfair debanking, and directing other agencies to use their authorities to bring an end to this practice,” she added.
Her call to support the CFPB comes after Trump tapped Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to serve as acting director of the agency Monday. Bessent reportedly halted staff to halt all work, according to The Wall Street Journal.
GOP lawmakers have long opposed the CFPB, which they argue has overstepped its regulatory authority.
Warren argued Tuesday that Bessent’s order to halt work at the agency “will only impede efforts to stop debanking.” She pointed to several proposed or finalized rules from the CFPB that would bar debanking based on political or religious affiliation and provide debanked customers notice and the ability to appeal account closures.
The Massachusetts Democrat said her staff has identified thousands debanking-related complaints in the past three years, with more than half of those complaints lodged against four major banks — Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo and Citigroup.
The letter marks a rare moment of alignment between the progressive senator and Trump. The president took aim at debanking, and Bank of America in particular, during a virtual appearance at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
During an exchange with Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan, Trump accused his bank and other financial institutions of refusing to do business with conservatives.
“I hope you start opening your bank to conservatives, because many conservatives complain that the banks are not allowing them to do business within the bank, and that included a place called Bank of America,” Trump said.
GOP lawmakers quickly jumped on the bandwagon, with House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer (R-Ky.) opening an investigation into debanking and Senate Banking Committee Chair Tim Scott (R-S.C.) announcing a hearing on the topic.
