President Donald Trump said on Saturday that he plans to sue JPMorgan Chase for allegedly closing his accounts after the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.
"I'll be suing JPMorgan Chase over the next two weeks for incorrectly and inappropriately DEBANKING me after the January 6th Protest," Trump wrote on Truth Social.
The White House and JPMorgan Chase didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.
The president signed an executive order in August requiring banks to ensure they aren't refusing financial services to clients based on religious or political beliefs.
Just days before signing the order, Trump alleged that JPMorgan and Bank of America had rejected him as a customer. The president said JPMorgan closed his accounts after decades with the bank.
Both JPMorgan and Bank of America told Barron's they never close accounts for political reasons.
In the same post on Saturday, Trump denied that he had offered the position of Federal Reserve chair to JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon.
"The problem is, I have Scott Bessent doing a fantastic job, A SUPERSTAR -- Why would I give it to Jamie?" Trump proclaimed, referring to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. "No such offer was made there, or even thought of, either."
On Thursday, Dimon said he wouldn't consider taking the position.
"Absolutely, positively no chance, no way, no how, for any reason," Dimon said at an event held by the Commerce Department.
The Fed's independence came into sharp focus after Chair Jerome Powell disclosed that the Justice Department had served the central bank with grand jury subpoenas.
In a video on Jan. 11, Powell said the Justice Department had threatened a criminal indictment related to his testimony concerning, in part, a project to renovate Federal Reserve office buildings.
The investigation stems from the Fed's refusal to cut interest rates, rather than bending to the will of the president, Powell said. He denied all wrongdoing.
"Public service sometimes requires standing firm in the face of threats, " Powell said. "I will continue to do the job the Senate confirmed me to do, with integrity and a commitment to serving the American people."
A Justice Department spokesperson said Attorney General Pam Bondi "has instructed her U.S. Attorneys to prioritize investigating any abuse of taxpayer dollars."
On Tuesday, during JPMorgan's fourth-quarter earnings call, Dimon said he had "enormous respect" for Powell, though he made sure not to align himself with all of the central bank's policy, especially on banking regulation.
"Everyone we know believes in Fed independence," Dimon said. "Anything that chips away at that is probably not a great idea -- and, in my view, will have the reverse consequences. It'll raise inflation expectations and probably increase rates over time."
Comments