President Donald Trump’s business trust has taken legal action against Capital One, accusing the bank of shutting down its accounts in 2021 due to political bias, allegedly inflicting significant financial damage.
Filed in Miami-Dade Circuit Court on Friday, the lawsuit, brought by the Donald J. Trump Revocable Trust and Eric Trump, alleges that the Virginia-based lender violated consumer protection laws in Florida and other states. The plaintiffs seek financial compensation for what they describe as an unjustified move that disrupted their business operations.
According to the lawsuit, Capital One informed Trump’s business in March 2021 that it would be closing hundreds of accounts holding millions of dollars within two months. The legal complaint broadens its argument by asserting that individuals and businesses across the country are being denied access to financial services due to their political views.
We obtained a copy of the lawsuit for you here.
“Plaintiffs have reason to believe that Capital One’s unilateral decision came about as a result of political and social motivations and Capital One’s unsubstantiated, ‘woke’ beliefs that it needed to distance itself from President Trump and his conservative political views,” the lawsuit states.
The filing further alleges that Capital One’s decision reflects an industry-wide trend aimed at pressuring individuals and businesses to conform to certain political ideologies. “Capital One’s conduct is but one example of a systemic, subversive industry practice that aims to coerce the public to shift and re-align their political views,” it claims.
However, Capital One has denied these allegations, asserting that its actions were not politically motivated. “Capital One has not and does not close customer accounts for political reasons,” a spokesperson for the bank said in a statement.
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Trump contends that being informed of the closures on March 8, 2021, with a final cutoff in June, caused substantial harm. The lawsuit argues that losing access to Capital One’s banking services disrupted the plaintiffs’ ability to conduct transactions and manage their financial resources, resulting in significant losses.
This development follows a broader trend in which financial institutions have severed ties with Trump’s businesses. Deutsche Bank and Signature Bank also distanced themselves from him in early 2021 following the events at the US Capitol.
At the same time, the Trump Organization and the family were under intense legal scrutiny, facing multiple civil and criminal investigations into their financial practices. The Manhattan District Attorney’s office had subpoenaed financial records from Trump’s long-time accounting firm, while prosecutors questioned employees from Deutsche Bank, one of Trump’s major lenders. The New York Attorney General’s office also conducted interviews with Trump Organization executives as part of its civil probe.
In July 2021, two entities under the Trump Organization umbrella were indicted on tax fraud charges and subsequently found guilty. The following year, the Attorney General’s office sued the Trump family and their business, alleging a decade-long scheme to inflate asset values to secure loans. A New York state judge later ruled against the Trumps, finding them liable for fraud and imposing a $454 million judgment, which remains under appeal.
