A company owned by President Donald Trump sued Capital One on Friday, claiming the bank unjustifiably terminated over 300 of the Trump Organization’s accounts without cause in 2021, shortly after the January 6 attack on the US Capitol. The suit was filed by the Donald J. Trump Revocable Trust and Eric Trump in Miami-Dade Circuit Court.
The Trump Organization claims the decision by Capital One to close the accounts was an attack on free speech and free enterprise. The suit also claims the decision was a response to Trump’s political views.
“Capital One has not and does not close customer accounts for political reasons,” the company said in a statement.
The Trump Organization claims it suffered considerable financial harm and losses when Capital One notified them in March 2021 that accounts holding millions of dollars would be closed in three months. The lawsuit claims Capital One violated the law and the Trump Organization is seeking damages.
The account closures were announced about two months after January 6, 2021, when a mob of several thousand Trump supporters attacked the U.S. Capitol in an attempt to stop lawmakers from certifying the 2020 election results, which named President Joe Biden as the winner.
Other banks also stopped doing business with the Trump Organization around the same time, while the business and Trump family members were facing civil and criminal investigations.