House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer said that he is investigating the alleged “debanking” of cryptocurrency firms, reaching out to venture capitalist Marc Andreessen and five crypto CEOs who have publicly raised concerns.
Debanking has become a flash point in the crypto space since Andreessen claimed on “The Joe Rogan Experience” in November that he knew 30 tech founders who had been the target of debanking — the closure of bank accounts that financial institutions consider risky, often with little or no notice.
Comer sent a letter to Andreessen, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong, Blockchain Association CEO Kristin Smith, Uniswap Labs CEO Hayden Adams, Lightspark CEO David Marcus and Payward CEO Dave Ripley, asking about their experiences with debanking.
“The Committee seeks to understand whether this pattern of debanking stems from financial institutions themselves or from government actors,” Comer wrote.
“The Committee seeks to ensure that entrepreneurs are not unfairly targeted and, by extension, that all Americans are able to participate in U.S. markets without fear of retaliation through illicit measures undertaken by financial institutions or federal regulators,” he continued.
Adams revealed in 2022 that JPMorgan Chase had closed his bank accounts with “no notice or explanation.” His company created the decentralized crypto exchange Uniswap.
“I know many individuals and companies who have been similarly targeted simply for working in the crypto industry,” he said in a post on the social platform X at the time. “Thanks for making it a personal.”
Marcus detailed a similar experience last April, saying the financial operations platform BILL informed his Bitcoin startup Lightspark that it could no longer service them due to its processing bank’s requirements and closed their account.
