Without a specific explanation, Brandon Wexler was simply told that “banking guidelines exclude lending to certain types of businesses.” In retrospect, this statement says much about the reasoning behind the move, and it fits an established pattern.
Wexler had a personal account with the Wall Street giant for 25 years and a business account for 14 years. Even so, he was given only about a month to find a new financial partner by the bank with precious little cause given.
In a Dec. 22 letter to Wexler, who is also a professional firefighter, the corporation said that it regularly reviews its account relationships “to manage risks in its banking operations.” After such a review, Wells Fargo related that “we will be closing your above-referenced accounts.”
Another letter was sent the following day announcing that his business line of credit was also closed.
Wexler noted that nothing changed in his business practices recently and believes that antagonism towards the firearms industry is behind the surprise move. “It feels like a direct attack against gun dealers,” he declared. “This all just happened recently, and we have been in business for many years. I’ve never ever seen anything like this.”
Wells Fargo struck back, denying Wexler’s contention that their decision was due to the nature of his business.
Jennifer L. Langan, head of communications for CSBB & Consumer lending for the financial institution, explained that “based on our analysis of the risk associated with this customer, we made a decision to close the accounts.”
Speaking to The Reload, Langan said not only was the decision not “based on the industry,” but the corporation has no stated policy opposing business with the weapons industry.
However, the trend in banking is glaringly apparent.
It was a decade ago when Operation Chokepoint was revealed. This was a White House initiative to influence financial institutions to discontinue business relationships with industries the government disapproved of.
These, of course, included firearms manufacturers and dealers.
The subterfuge was exposed and canceled, but that did not prevent Citibank and Bank of America from implementing policies that ended their dealings with firms that manufactured or distributed certain types of weapons or ammunition.
Wells Fargo initially was one of the good guys. The corporation pushed back against efforts by activist investors to end its relationship with leading gun maker Ruger, and there was never a public announcement of new policies against partnerships with the industry as there were with other leading banking institutions.
But in recent times, there has been a noticeable shift at Wells Fargo.
Three years ago, the firm pledged to donate $10 million to “gun violence research,” and in 2020 it announced that it was severing its dealings with the National Rifle Association.
Closing access to financial transactions is a blatant attempt to stifle the gun industry, and Second Amendment advocates should be up in arms.
The National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) is fighting back against discrimination towards the firearms industry through legislative efforts. Spokesman Mark Oliva told The Reload that the canceling of business ties with Wex Gunworks “is the most recent example of ‘woke’ banking discrimination against the firearms industry.”
There is currently a massive lobbying effort for passage of the Firearm Industry Nondiscrimination Act (FIND). The legislation is like that enacted in Texas in 2022 which barred banks that cannot certify they do not discriminate against firearms businesses from competing for state and municipal contracts.
Texas is currently deciding if Citibank and JP Morgan are violating state law, which both deny.
Financial institutions such as Wells Fargo apparently feel free to use backdoor tactics to suppress the firearms industry. Lawmakers and gun rights advocates across the nation must resist this insidious attempt to stifle Second Amendment freedoms.
