Executives from Bank of America and JPMorgan share their insights on the potential return of President Trump
Shifts in Bank Regulations Under the Trump Administration
Following the election of the Trump administration in 2025, significant changes are being implemented in the realm of bank regulations, with a particular focus on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), Federal Reserve stress testing, and Basel III rules, among other regulatory adjustments.
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and Bank Account Closures
In an effort to reduce perceived political bias in banking access, President Trump issued an executive order aimed at ending "debanking"—the practice where regulators and banks close accounts or deny services for political reasons. The order requires federal banking regulators to remove "reputational risk" standards from regulatory guidance and mandates review and penalties for unlawful politicized debanking, marking a direct regulatory intervention in this area [1][3][4].
Federal Reserve Stress Testing
Although specific changes to the Federal Reserve’s stress testing process were not detailed in the immediate sources, the administration has emphasized reducing burdensome regulation overall. The 2025 regulatory updates indicate ongoing review by the OCC, FDIC, and Federal Reserve, suggesting a possible moderation or recalibration of stress testing expectations to support banks' operational flexibility while maintaining safety [5].
Basel III Rules
While there is no direct indication from the latest Trump administration actions of rolling back Basel III capital requirements, the administration has focused on aligning capital and regulatory requirements more closely with actual risks, especially with respect to digital assets and stablecoins. For instance, the GENIUS Act signed in July 2025 establishes a federal regulatory framework for digital assets and stablecoins, and calls for bank capital rules to reflect the actual risks associated with these innovations rather than their mere presence on blockchains [2].
Other relevant points from the recent regulatory environment include:
- The Trump administration has ended "Operation Choke Point 2.0," which was a regulatory effort that critics said unjustly denied banking services to certain digital asset companies, reflecting a policy tilt aimed at fostering innovation in digital finance and stablecoin adoption [2].
- The President’s Working Group on Digital Asset Markets has recommended clarifying permissible bank activities regarding custody, tokenization, and issuance of digital assets, signaling an administration push to modernize banking regulations in the digital era [2].
In summary, under the Trump administration in 2025, banking regulation is shifting toward reducing politicization in customer access, modernizing frameworks to accommodate digital financial technologies, and potentially easing stringent regulatory pressures like stress tests, while maintaining a focus on real risk-based capital requirements rather than broad regulatory standards [1][2][3][4][5].
Key figures in the banking industry, such as JPMorgan Chase Chief Operating Officer Jennifer Piepszak, Wells CEO Charlie Scharf, and KeyBank CEO Chris Gorman, have expressed their views on these regulatory changes. Piepszak and Scharf, for example, have described the changes as a "shock and awe moment," with Scharf expressing a desire for the Basel III rule to be finalized for "closure." Gorman, on the other hand, believes that change at federal agencies may take time, as people at the top come and go, but career staffers remain [6].
The White House has also nominated Jonathan Gould, an agency veteran, to lead the OCC, and Otting, who previously served as head of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), states that bank supervision is an area where comptrollers can exert a significant influence [7].
These regulatory shifts are expected to have a profound impact on the banking sector, and industry leaders are closely watching to see how the administration’s moves play out. JPMorgan CFO Jeremy Barnum, for instance, wants balanced, coherent regulation that allows banks to support the economy without conflicting with the safety and soundness of the system [6]. Wells Fargo CFO Mike Santomassimo, meanwhile, has noted a change in the regulatory tone and expects more meaningful discussion on stress test changes this year [6].
References:
- CNBC
- The Hill
- American Banker
- Wall Street Journal
- Bloomberg
- Reuters
- The New York Times
- The Trump administration's focus on regulation in the banking sector extends to policy changes affecting the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), with an aim to reduce political bias in banking access and penalize unlawful politicized debanking.
- In the realm of federal reserve stress testing, the Trump administration's regulatory updates indicate a possible moderation or recalibration of stress testing expectations, which may support banks' operational flexibility while maintaining safety.
- As part of the administration's efforts to modernize banking regulations, there is a push to align capital and regulatory requirements more closely with actual risks, particularly for digital assets and stablecoins, as demonstrated by the GENIUS Act signed in July 2025.