JPMorgan’s recent closure of accounts for two prominent cryptocurrency executives has reignited fears within the digital asset industry of a coordinated banking crackdown.
The bank froze the commercial account of Houston Morgan, Head of Marketing and Protocol Relations at ShapeShift, last Friday, and informed him that his personal account would also be closed in the coming days. This follows a similar action against Jack Mallers, CEO of crypto payments firm Strike, days earlier.
U.S. Senator Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming stated that these account closures suggest “Operation Chokepoint 2.0” is “unfortunately still active.” She argued that such measures erode trust in traditional banking and could push the digital asset sector overseas.
🚨 JPMorgan cierra cuentas a ejecutivos de la industria cripto 🚨
Houston Morgan of ShapeShift and Jack Mallers of Strike have their accounts frozen without prior notice.
The closures unleash fears of a possible campaign against crypto companies.
Senator Lummis…
Morgan, who resides in Los Angeles and leads a working group for ShapeShift’s decentralized autonomous organization (DAO), confirmed to The Block that his accounts were frozen without prior notification. He received a request for more information last week, but minutes later, access was blocked.
Despite attempts to communicate with the bank’s various teams, Morgan received no effective explanation. A JPMorgan representative later stated the decision was made to “discontinue the commercial relationship” to protect the institution from unspecified risks.
Morgan reported that the bank offered no solutions, leaving capital essential for managing payments and contracts inaccessible.
The earlier closure of accounts belonging to Strike CEO Jack Mallers prevented him from withdrawing his capital or processing company deposits.
These events contradict a previous executive order from former President Donald Trump, which directed federal regulators not to penalize banks for working with cryptocurrency companies.