(Ken Silva, Headline USA) The Wall Street Journal reported Saturday that progressive non-profit organizations have raised alarms that billionaire George Soros will be “de-banked” by the Trump administration—that is, he’ll have his accounts frozen and won’t be able to fund leftist initiatives.
The Journal’s article comes amidst reports that the Justice Department is probing Soros for potential criminal offenses, including arson, providing material support to terrorism, racketeering, wire fraud, and other violations. Soros and his Open Society Foundations have long drawn right-wing scrutiny for funneling billions into left-leaning causes, including the election of some of the nation’s most radical prosecutors.
According to the Journal, “a coalition of progressive nonprofits, meanwhile, is warning Capitol Hill offices that the administration could use investigations to push financial institutions to ‘debank’ or freeze the accounts associated with major Democratic donors including Soros, which could damage Democrats’ prospects in the 2026 midterm elections.”
Despite the reported concerns, Soros is still funding left-wing groups at full force. Open Society is on track to hand out $1.4 billion this year, according to the Journal, which cited people with knowledge of the spending. By contrast, billionaires Mark Zuckerberg and Bill Gates have both drastically scaled back their spending on liberal groups.
The IRS reportedly didn’t respond to the Journal’s request for comment.
De-banking was a common tactic used against government dissidents under the Biden administration.
According to the Senate Banking Committee, 8,056 consumers filed complaints with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau against a financial institution for improperly closing checking, savings, or other deposit accounts. In the same period, 3,899 consumers filed complaints related to being “unable to open” a deposit account
Some of the more high-profile examples of de-banking in recent years include Dr. Joseph Mercola, whose bank accounts were deactivated by JP Morgan Chase in 2023. Mercola achieved public prominence for his opposition to the COVID-19 vaccine.
Additionally, last May journalist Christina Urso, who’s making a documentary about the 2020 plot to kidnap Michigan’s governor, had her account closed by Bank of America.
Victims of de-banking have noted the irony that financial institutions de-bank political dissidents, but have no problem doing business with notorious criminals such as Jeffrey Epstein. The attorney general for the U.S. Virgin Islands revealed last year that JP Morgan Chase had a relationship with Epstein until mere months before his death in 2019.
Once Donald Trump took office earlier this year, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., whom Trump nicknamed “Pocahontas” over her dubious claims to be of Native American heritage, wrote to the White House, offering to work together on de-banking.
Trump has an unlikely ally in its fight to stop “de-banking”: None other than Sen. Elizabeth Warren, who wrote to the President about the matter last night.
“Dear President Trump, I write to request that you take action on preventing the debanking of too many Americans across the… pic.twitter.com/aa80wnVpri— Ken Silva (@JD_Cashless) February 5, 2025
“Dear President Trump, 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 to Trump in February.
“You share what appears to be a bipartisan interest in addressing debanking,” Warren added, referencing Trump’s comments at the World Economic Forum, where he blasted Bank of America for de-banking conservatives.
“I strongly agree that debanking is a serious issue, and it is unfortunately a practice not confined to Bank of America. My staff has identified thousands of debanking-related complaints lodged by consumers in the last three years alone,” she said, listing four main de-banking culprits: Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo, and Citigroup.
Ken Silva is the editor of Headline USA. Follow him at x.com/jd_cashless.
