U.S. Government Rejects Transparency Requests Regarding Operation Chokepoint 2.0

Some U.S. government agencies continue to reject transparency requests regarding their role in Operation Chokepoint 2.0, during which crypto and tech founders were allegedly denied banking services under the Biden administration, according to Coinbase’s Chief Legal Officer Paul Grewal.

The collapse of crypto-friendly banks in early 2023 sparked the first allegations of Operation Chokepoint 2.0. Critics, including venture capitalist Nic Carter, described it as a government effort to pressure banks into severing ties with cryptocurrency firms.

Despite recent regulatory changes, agencies like the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) continue to “resist basic transparency” efforts, Grewal wrote in a March 8, 2025 post.

“They haven’t gotten the message,” he added.

Coinbase Requests FDIC to Disclose Operation Chokepoint 2.0 Documents

Coinbase requested that the FDIC explain how it conducted “due diligence” to ensure no documents related to the event were destroyed in court. However, the agency “repeatedly refused to do so,” Grewal said.

These comments came just hours after the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) softened its stance on how banks can engage with crypto. U.S. President Donald Trump vowed to end the prolonged crackdown restricting crypto firms’ access to banking services.

Trump said during the White House Crypto Summit, “I am ending Operation Chokepoint 2.0” to industry leaders.

Grewal: FDIC Did Not Fully Cooperate with Coinbase’s FOIA Requests

Grewal claimed that the FDIC did not fully cooperate with Coinbase’s Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests.

“The agency has only produced snippets from a few documents that have little to no relation to the specific FOIA policies or practices discussed in History Associates’ amended complaint. What exactly are they hiding?” wrote Grewal.

Additionally, Grewal noted that the FDIC had redacted a total of 53 pages, with many other pages containing “heavy redactions rendering the documents unintelligible.”

Grewal also mentioned that his team had requested the FDIC provide a “sworn testimony” to the court.

On March 4, Coinbase submitted a FOIA request to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to find out how many investigations and enforcement actions were brought against crypto firms between April 17, 2021, and January 20, 2025.

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The post FDIC Resists Transparency on Operation Chokepoint 2.0 appeared first on Coin Engineer.