ANNALS OF TRUMPI$TAN: Capital One says it closed Trump Organization’s accounts after anti-money-laundering review. (Kenrick Chi, Reuters, August 1, 2026)

From Reuters:

Capital One says it closed Trump Organization's accounts after anti-money laundering probe

By Kenrick Cai

August 1, 20267:19 PM EDTUpdated 3 hours ago

U.S. President Donald Trump gives thumbs-up as he walks to board Marine One following his arrival aboard Air Force One at Morristown Municipal Airport in Morristown, New Jersey, U.S., July 31, 2026. REUTERS/Daniel Heuer/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights

• Summary
• Companies

• Capital One says anti-money laundering review prompted closure of more than 300 Trump-affiliated accounts
• Trump Organization and Eric Trump sued in March 2025, alleging political debanking
• Miami federal court tossed two complaints but let plaintiffs file amended versions

SAN FRANCISCO, Aug 1 (Reuters) - Capital One Financial (COF.N), opens new tab hit back on Friday against a lawsuit over its decision to close ‌the Trump Organization's bank accounts years ago, stating that it did so after a review by anti-money laundering experts.

The disclosure marks the first time a bank has formally tied money laundering concerns to U.S. President Donald Trump's family business. Capital One is seeking to dismiss ​the case by casting doubt on claims of illegally debanking — or denying services on religious or political grounds — ​the Trump Organization.

he Trump Organization and Capital One did not immediately respond to requests for ⁠comment.

Capital One has never accused the Trump Organization of illegal money laundering. But Friday's filing argues that "documents and Plaintiffs’ own ​allegations make clear that Capital One closed Plaintiffs’ accounts for anti-money laundering (“AML”) reasons. The closures were the result of months ​of analysis and a careful review by Capital One’s AML team in accordance with bank policies and regulatory guidance."

Capital One gave notice of its plans to close more than 300 Trump-affiliated bank accounts in March 2021. The Trump Organization and Eric Trump, the president’s son, filed ​a lawsuit in March 2025 in a Florida federal court, alleging the accounts were closed because of Capital One’s “woke” ​beliefs and its desire to benefit from the political mood after the January 6, 2021 riot at the U.S. Capitol.

'MISGUIDED' ALLEGATIONS: CAPITAL ONE

The ‌federal ⁠court in Miami has tossed two complaints in the Capital One case, but gave the plaintiffs opportunities each time to submit an amended complaint. Capital One said that the latest version, filed in July, “suffers from the same fundamental flaws as their prior two pleadings.”

Capital One said in Friday’s filing that the Trump Organization’s allegations of political pretext were “misguided” and “based on ​cherry-picked quotations unsupported by the full ​context” of documents submitted ⁠to the court.

“The transaction patterns identified by Capital One are among the types of activity flagged by federal banking guidance,” the filing said.

Since the start of Trump's second term, his ​administration has put pressure on some large banks, echoing conservative complaints that the institutions are ​deliberately targeting the ⁠political right.

Trump signed an executive order in August 2025 barring discriminatory debanking. In January, Trump filed a suit against JPMorgan Chase (JPM.N), opens new tab on the same grounds, underscoring the fraught policy environment Wall Street is navigating during the president’s second term.

In 2019, during his first term, Trump sued ⁠Capital One ​and Deutsche Bank in an attempt to prevent them from sharing financial ​records with Congress as part of a probe led by Democratic lawmakers. Anti-money laundering professionals at Deutsche Bank reportedly flagged a set of transactions, but ​executives ignored them; Deutsche Bank denied the report at the time.

eporting by Kenrick Cai; Editing by Sergio Non and Rod Nickel

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab

• Suggested Topics:
• Finance
• White Collar Crime
• Corporate Counsel
• Finance & Banking
• Securities Enforcement

Purchase Licensing Rights

Kenrick Cai

Thomson Reuters

Kenrick Cai is a correspondent for Reuters based in San Francisco. He covers Google, its parent company Alphabet and artificial intelligence. Cai joined Reuters in 2024. He previously worked at Forbes magazine, where he was a staff writer covering venture capital and startups. He received a Best in Business award from the Society for Advancing Business Editing and Writing in 2023. He is a graduate of Duke University. Reach him on Signal at @kenrick.01.

• 
  

Who is WILLIAM STAFFORD JONES?

UPDATE July 31, 2026:  any sign of JONES in 2026?

Gainesville-based dark money PAC creator, longtime Alachua County Republican Executive Committee Chair. 

Campaign treasurer for County Commissioner SARAH ARNOLD, appointed by Gov. DeSANTIS and elected in 2022, not seeking re-election in 2026, now facing FDLE criminal charges, with Commissioner CHRISTIAN WHITEHURST and St. Augustine Beach Commissioner DYLAN RUMRELL, involving election fraud -- phony GQP ballot endorsement mails sent to tens of thousands of people.

Founder of Mosquitos4Justice PAC, funded with $22,000, which ran television ads with my head placed on the body of an insect, calling me the biggest liberal in St. Johns County, opposing my candidacy for the Anastasia Mosquito Control District of St. Johns County in 2020.  

(Amidst COVID, I did not campaign, paid $25 for filling. fee, while receiving 18,886 votes countywide in three-way race, in which Ms. Gayle Gardner defeated longtime AMCD member Gary Howell.)

From Wikipedia: 

William Stafford Jones

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jump to navigationJump to search

The topic of this article may not meet Wikipedia's notability guideline for biographies. Please help to demonstrate the notability of the topic by citing reliable secondary sources that are independent of the topic and provide significant coverage of it beyond a mere trivial mention. If notability cannot be shown, the article is likely to be merged, redirected, or deleted. Find sources: "William Stafford Jones" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR  (July 2021) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

William "Stafford" Jones is a political consultant in Gainesville, Florida.^[1] Jones was on the Florida state delegation for the 2020 Republican National Convention and was a longtime the Chairman of Alachua County Republican Party.^[2][3]

Jones is known for creating dozens of political action committees that have spent millions of dollars in Florida state elections.^[4][5][3] In 2021, the nonpartisan watchdog organization Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington reported that two of Jones' organizations falsely reported on their tax returns that they engaged in no political activities and failed to disclose more than $1 million in political contributions.^[3] Florida Democrats have complained that Jones' organizations have funded spoiler candidates^[3][5] and used deceptive tactics.^[6][7]

In 2012, Jones was a key figure in redrawing Florida's congressional districts that the Florida Supreme Court declared unconstitutional because they were gerrymandered with "partisan intent."^[8][9] Jones helped find citizens to submit maps during the redistricting process that had been pre-drawn by Republican consultants and to provide scripted public comment based on Republican talking points.^[10][11][12]

References[edit source]

1. ^ Caplan, Andrew (2019-01-12). "Behind the scenes, Bainter pulls strings". Gainesville Sun. Retrieved 2021-05-21.
2. ^ Lyons, Dylan (2021-06-12). "The Republican National Convention will be hosted in Florida". WCJB. Retrieved 2021-05-21.
3. ^ Jump up to: ^a b c d Henderson, John (2021-02-26). "Watchdog group: Nonprofits broke IRS laws, gave nearly $3 million to Republican campaigns". Gainesville Sun. Retrieved 2021-05-21.
4. ^ Henderson, John. "Watchdog group: Nonprofits broke IRS laws, gave nearly $3 million to Republican campaigns". Gainesville Sun. Retrieved 2021-05-21. Jones has been listed on the paperwork of more than 85 political committees registered in Florida that have come and gone, giving contributions to Republican candidates and their causes.
5. ^ Jump up to: ^a b March, William (2021-04-26). "Tampa Bay GOP congressional candidate suing local Community Patriots group". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved 2021-05-21. well-known Republican finance maven
6. ^ Curry, Christopher (2012-09-15). "Legislator files elections complaint against Alachua County GOP chief". Gainesville Sun. Retrieved 2021-05-21.
7. ^ Morgan, Watkins (2014-08-16). "Robocalls using Crist's words from 2006 defended, assailed". Gainesville Sun. Retrieved 2021-05-21.
8. ^ Larrabee, Brandon (2014-11-26). "Redistricting process under scrutiny". Miami Herald. Retrieved 2021-05-21. Alachua County Republican Party Chairman Stafford Jones emerges in the testimony and documents as a key figure in the process.
9. ^ Prokop, Andrew (2015-12-05). "Florida's Supreme Court has struck another blow against gerrymandering". Vox. Retrieved 2021-05-21.
10. ^ Dixon, Matt. "Depositions show Florida GOP push for favorable Senate lines". Politico. Retrieved 2021-05-21.
11. ^ Deslatte, Aaron. "Redistricting records: GOP-led process was an 'illusion'". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved 2021-05-21.
12. ^ Klas, Mary Ellen (2015-08-20). "Documents Reveal Secret Florida Senate Process to Draw District Maps". Miami Herald. Retrieved 2021-05-21.