A Christian law firm is praising a major bank chain for reversing one of the controversial policies that led conservative individuals and nonprofits to stop banking over the past few years.
JPMorgan Chase, the largest bank in the United States, has withdrawn its WePay service, which requires retailers to refrain from accepting payments or using its services for activities related to “social risk issues,” which the bank defines as “allegations or influences related to hate groups, systemic racism, sexual harassment, or company culture.”
This statement is based on the company’s WePay Terms of Use, It was discovered this month by the Alliance for the Defence of Freedom (ADF).
“We support clients across the world and every state in the United States, regardless of industry, religion or political affiliation,” a JPMorgan Chase spokesperson told Fox News Digital in a statement Thursday evening.
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JPMorgan Chase, the largest bank in the US, has scaled back its WePay service, which required retailers to refrain from accepting payments or using the service for activities related to “social risk issues”. (Google Maps)
“Chase has used this policy to discriminate based on views,” ADF senior adviser Jeremy Tedesco said in an interview with Fox News Digital. “The policy itself puts WePay and Chase, the largest bank in the United States, at risk.”
“There are millions of people who are at risk of having their payments declined or not processed,” Tedesco continued, “so it’s important that they removed that policy. I think the next step for Chase is for them to say in various documents, ‘We are absolutely committed to not discriminating against people because of their religion or political views.’ I would like to see them include that statement in their forward-thinking customer policies. That’s the next step.”
In recent years, Chase and others The major bank chains laid off employees. Chase also shut down the account of the National Religious Freedom Commission (NCRF), a political nonprofit, in 2022 with little explanation.
That same year, Chase abruptly suspended, without giving any reason, the account of former U.S. Ambassador Sam Brownback’s National Committee for Religious Freedom.
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Chase’s cuts come at the same time that a group of 15 financial leaders representing 13 states last month warned Bank of America about alleged “politicized banking cuts” that target conservatives. (AP2013)
“Americans should not have to fear that they will lose access to their bank accounts or payments because of their religious or political beliefs,” Tedesco said. “I think it’s significant that Chase has taken this step.”
In another 2021 incident, WePay refused to process ticket payments for a Republican event hosted by the nonprofit Defense of Liberty, which featured Donald Trump Jr. WePay initially refused service, citing its policy of not providing services related to “items or activities that encourage, promote, facilitate, or instruct others regarding hatred…racism…”
at that time, JPMorgan Chase reversed its decision. The group also said it “did not violate any terms of use” after Missouri Treasurer Scott Fitzpatrick denounced the bank and warned the state would reconsider doing business with it due to what he saw as ideological discrimination.
To encourage private companies to uphold free speech, ADF launched the Business Index, which ranks companies based on their policies.
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Many banking companies and financial institutions have implemented specific DEI policies. (Getty Images/istock/Dmitry Dzhemidovich)
According to the ADF, more than 90 percent of the companies on the index “incorporate divisive concepts like critical race theory into employee training materials.” Employee Survey In the 2023 Workplace Freedom Survey, many said this approach divides rather than unites colleagues, while the same number of respondents said they would be less likely to trust others or feel accepted at work if they were told in company-sponsored training that they were complicit in racism and oppression based on skin color, religion or gender.”
Tedesco’s group is the most Updated indexes this week.
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The Chase rollback came last month when a group of 15 financial leaders representing 13 states filed a lawsuit against Bank of America saying: ‘Politicized bank closures’ targeting conservatives.
Fox News Digital’s Eric Revell contributed to this report.
