JPMorgan Chase's 'Debanking' of Strike CEO Sparks Operation Chokepoint 2.0 Fears

JPMorgan Chase's 'Debanking' of Strike CEO Sparks Operation Chokepoint 2.0 Fears

The decision by banking behemoth JPMorgan Chase to discontinue its relationship with Jack Mallers, CEO of Bitcoin payments firm Strike, is stoking fears of a new wave of 'debanking' aimed at the cryptocurrency sector within the United States. This echoes anxieties that plagued the industry during the banking volatility of 2023.

Mallers, who heads the Bitcoin (BTC) Lightning Network payment solution Strike, announced on X (formerly Twitter) that JPMorgan Chase had unilaterally closed his personal accounts without providing any justification. He stated, 'Last month, J.P. Morgan Chase threw me out of the bank. Every time I asked them why, they said the same thing: We aren’t allowed to tell you.' Cointelegraph has reached out to JPMorgan Chase for an official statement.

This action has triggered concerns about a revival of 'Operation Chokepoint 2.0,' a phrase used by critics to describe perceived governmental pressure on financial institutions to terminate their relationships with crypto-related businesses. Senator Cynthia Lummis commented on X, 'Operation Chokepoint 2.0 regrettably lives on.' She argued that actions like JPMorgan's 'undermine confidence in traditional banking' while simultaneously pushing the digital asset industry offshore. She further added, 'It’s past time we put Operation Chokepoint 2.0 to rest to make America the digital asset capital of the world.'

Other prominent figures in the crypto space, including Caitlin Long of Custodia Bank, suggest that these debanking initiatives targeting the crypto industry could persist until January 2026, awaiting the appointment of a new Federal Reserve governor. During Cointelegraph’s Chainreaction daily X show on March 21, Long noted, 'Trump won’t have the ability to appoint a new Fed governor until January. So, therefore, you can see the breadcrumbs leading up to a potentially big fight.'

Custodia Bank, under Long’s leadership, has been a frequent target of these alleged debanking efforts, costing the company considerable time and financial resources, estimated at 'a couple of million dollars.' The collapse of several crypto-friendly banks in early 2023 initially sparked allegations of Operation Chokepoint 2.0, with reports suggesting that at least 30 technology and cryptocurrency entrepreneurs were denied banking services during the Biden administration.

In August 2025, former President Donald Trump signed an executive order aimed at curbing debanking practices, seeking to prevent banks from cutting off services to industries deemed politically unfavorable, including the cryptocurrency sector.

Lummis Accuses FDIC of Destroying Records

Debanking concerns intensified in January when Senator Lummis's office received information from an anonymous whistleblower alleging that the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) was actively 'destroying material' related to Operation Chokepoint 2.0. In a letter published on January 16, Lummis stated, 'The FDIC’s alleged efforts to destroy and conceal materials from the U.S. Senate related to Operation Chokepoint 2.0 is not only unacceptable, it is illegal,' and threatened 'swift criminal referrals' should the allegations prove true.

Traditional financial institutions have long been critical of crypto firms, citing concerns about facilitating illicit finance. However, data from Better Markets and the Financial Times reveals that US banks themselves have paid over $200 billion in fines in the past two decades for compliance failures, with Bank of America reportedly accounting for approximately $82.9 billion of those penalties and JPMorgan Chase exceeding $40 billion.