Capital One says it closed about 385 accounts tied to Donald Trump and his businesses in 2021 after a months-long anti-money-laundering review, a detail disclosed in a July 31 court filing. The Trump Organization calls the bank’s explanation a post hoc effort to conceal politically motivated "debanking." Capital One points to a prior $390 million penalty for AML failures and notes it gave account holders time to find new banking services. A federal judge dismissed the original complaint but allowed an amended complaint to be filed.
Capital One Says It Closed About 385 Trump-Linked Accounts After Months-Long AML Review
Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images - PHOTO: President Donald Trump listens to questions from reporters during a Cabinet meeting at Camp David, the presidential retreat, July 31, 2026 in Camp David, Maryland.
Capital One told a federal court it closed roughly 385 bank accounts tied to President Donald Trump and his businesses in 2021 after a months-long anti-money-laundering (AML) review, the bank disclosed in a July 31 court filing.
In a motion asking the court to dismiss Trump’s lawsuit over the account closures, Capital One said the terminations were the product of a lengthy AML analysis conducted in accordance with the bank’s policies and regulatory guidance, not political motivation. The bank emphasized it did not publicize its internal decision-making process and that it gave customers several months and extensions to find alternative banking services.
"The closures were the result of months of analysis and a careful review by Capital One's AML team in accordance with bank policies and regulatory guidance," the bank’s lawyers wrote on July 31. "Capital One never publicized the termination decision nor its confidential internal process giving rise to the closure, and it permitted Plaintiffs several months (and granted several extensions) to find new banking services, which they did."
The Trump Organization has rejected that explanation, calling it an after-the-fact justification for what it describes as politically motivated "debanking." A Trump Organization spokesperson told ABC News that Capital One "manufactured a post hoc rationale" by resurrecting old transactions it had never previously flagged as problematic, and said the closures followed backlash after the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.
The lawsuit, filed last year by Trump’s trust, several of his companies and Eric Trump, alleges Capital One closed approximately 385 accounts for political reasons. Capital One counters that the closures followed an internal AML review and notes that months before the shutdowns it agreed to pay a $390 million penalty to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network for anti-money-laundering program shortcomings.
U.S. District Judge Roy Altman, a Trump appointee, dismissed the original complaint earlier this year for failing to state a legal claim but granted the plaintiffs leave to file an amended complaint last month. Separately, Trump has filed similar "debanking" claims against JPMorgan Chase; that suit remains pending and JPMorgan maintains the action lacks merit, saying banks sometimes close accounts that present legal or regulatory risks.
Other New York investigations into Trump’s finances have focused on alleged inflation of asset values to obtain favorable loan terms and on alleged falsification of business records related to alleged hush-money payments; neither of those matters charged money laundering. Trump was convicted in 2024 on charges of falsifying business records and was found civilly liable for inflating business assets; he has appealed both rulings, and a mid-level court later vacated the civil financial penalty tied to the asset case.
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