The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency’s (OCC) “Guaranteeing Fair Banking for All Americans” final debanking report targets the nation’s nine largest national banks, but its findings carry secondary implications for Texas community banks. The OCC report explicitly criticized big banks for restricting or imposing friction on lawful sectors like oil and gas and firearms, both of which are economic pillars in Texas.
Community banks that continue to serve these sectors face less pressure from federal examiners to shun them. Additionally, the OCC directly credited state laws, such as the Texas Financial Industry Nondiscrimination Act (FIND Act), with acting as the primary legal driver that forced major banks to start re-thinking their discriminatory policies in late 2023 and 2024 to protect their public contracts.
