- Coinbase’s chief legal officer alleges government agencies continue to resist transparency regarding their role in Operation Chokepoint 2.0.
- The FDIC has reportedly provided only limited documentation in response to Freedom of Information Act requests, with heavy redactions.
- President Trump recently announced an end to Operation Chokepoint 2.0, with the OCC already easing restrictions on banks engaging with crypto firms.
Government resistance to transparency regarding alleged cryptocurrency banking restrictions continues despite recent policy shifts, according to Coinbase Chief Legal Officer Paul Grewal. Despite President Trump’s declaration to end “Operation Chokepoint 2.0,” some federal agencies remain reluctant to disclose their involvement in what crypto industry leaders describe as coordinated efforts to deny banking services.
In a March 8 post on X, Grewal stated that agencies like the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) still “resist basic transparency” efforts concerning their role in allegedly pressuring banks to sever ties with cryptocurrency companies.
“They haven’t gotten the message,” Grewal wrote, noting that Coinbase has requested the FDIC provide court documentation on how it conducted “due diligence” to ensure no evidence related to Operation Chokepoint 2.0 was destroyed. According to Grewal, the agency has “repeatedly refused to do so.”
The controversy originated in early 2023 following the collapse of several crypto-friendly banks, when industry figures including venture capitalist Nic Carter began describing systematic efforts to disconnect cryptocurrency firms from banking services as “Operation Chokepoint 2.0” – a reference to a previous Obama-era program targeting specific industries.
Grewal’s comments came just one day after the US Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) relaxed its position on bank engagement with cryptocurrency firms, shortly following President Trump’s vow at the White House Crypto Summit to end restrictions on crypto companies’ access to banking services.
The FDIC has allegedly provided only “snippets” of documents in response to Coinbase’s Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests. Grewal claimed the agency redacted 53 pages completely, with many others containing “heavy redactions rendering the documents unintelligible.” Coinbase has requested the FDIC provide “sworn testimony” to the court regarding these matters.
Reports indicate at least 30 technology and cryptocurrency founders were “secretly debanked” during Operation Chokepoint 2.0, according to Cointelegraph’s November 2024 coverage.
On March 4, Coinbase also submitted a FOIA request to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), seeking information about investigations and enforcement actions against crypto firms between April 2021 and January 2025.
President Trump previously signed an executive order addressing banking challenges for Web3 companies in January. The order notably excluded the US Federal Reserve and FDIC from cryptocurrency working groups, a move that Custodia Bank CEO Caitlin Long suggested might effectively end previous industry debanking efforts.
The former FDIC chair Martin Gruenberg, described by some as the “architect of Operation Chokepoint 2.0,” resigned from his position in January 2023.
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