U.S. bank closing all of my deposit accounts because of bitcoins

[bronco]

Got letter today from U.S. bank (usbank.com) saying because i use my accounts to buy bitcoins they are closing my accounts. They say it against their rules. Can you guys help me and tell me what banks you use to buy bitcoins?

[CurbsideProphet]

Got letter today from U.S. bank (usbank.com) saying because i use my accounts to buy bitcoins they are closing my accounts. They say it against their rules. Can you guys help me and tell me what banks you use to buy bitcoins?

Doesn't sound right.  Did they provide you with their ToS with the letter and exactly where you broke the terms?  What are they doing with the funds in your account, are they freezing them or giving you them via official bank check, etc.?

[franky1]

agreed, if its against their rules then you should request to see the rule book

[TippingPoint]

Got letter today from U.S. bank (usbank.com) saying because i use my accounts to buy bitcoins they are closing my accounts. They say it against their rules. Can you guys help me and tell me what banks you use to buy bitcoins?

Will you post a copy of the letter?

[Peter Lambert]

What sorts of transactions were you doing related to bitcoins?

[acoindr]

Bitcoins, as a new invention, are causing lots of confusion. Bitcoins are not issued by any government so banking institutions may be unsure how to handle them in context of banking regulations.

Banks may over react and close accounts to be on the safe side. In fact, that happened to MtGox's bank in France a year ago I believe, but MtGox sued and had their account reopened (I think they later switched banks anyway).

The first thing to understand is bitcoins are not illegal. Guidance issued by FinCEN (Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, a bureau of US Dept. of the Treasury) pertaining to virtual currencies, and seemingly Bitcoin in particular, specifically says users that trade virtual currency directly for goods/services are not subject to regulation. This is generally taken to mean using bitcoins in legal ways is fine. There is an entire industry springing up around Bitcoin, including a possible stock exchange listing.

So a bank saying it's against their rules seems to me overly cautious.

If you're willing to take the time it may be possible to have your account reopened, but that outcome is not guaranteed. The easiest thing to do I think is simply open an account somewhere else and don't use it for anything directly bitcoin related until these issues become clearer. There are other ways to buy/sell bitcoins with localbitcoins.com usually available if nothing else. BitInstant.com is also a popular way to transfer money into Bitcoin exchanges. More options are in the works.

[bronco]

here is what i got. it doesn say much. So when i called bank asking what rules i broke they told I was buying bitcoins . I didnt tell bank i was using it to buy bitcoins just ecurrencies. Somehow they find out
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/106526372/letter.jpg

What sorts of transactions were you doing related to bitcoins?

all i was doing is arbitrage. buying in one place sell them in other

[knight22]

Banks suck!

[bronco]

If you're willing to take the time it may be possible to have your account reopened, but that outcome is not guaranteed.

Bank says they will never deal with me again, wont open or reopen any accounts. Funny thing that they kept my credit accounts but closing only deposit accounts

[Peter Lambert]

Got letter today from U.S. bank (usbank.com) saying because i use my accounts to buy bitcoins they are closing my accounts. They say it against their rules. Can you guys help me and tell me what banks you use to buy bitcoins?

I had a mortgage which was sold to US bank. They were pretty difficult to deal with, the customer service was horrid. I would not recommend using them for anything.

[acoindr]

What sorts of transactions were you doing related to bitcoins?

all i was doing is arbitrage. buying in one place sell them in other

If you were doing arbitrage I'm guessing there was quite a bit of activity on your bank account. For example, if you only wanted to by several bitcoins to hold or trade for goods/services, you might make one or two large transactions with your bank account, but then only deal in bitcoins. However, it sounds like you might have lots of bank transfer activity which could have raised a flag even if you weren't doing anything wrong.

It may depend on the bank too though, as you're not the only one to receive a bank letter concerning bitcoins:

http://www.reddit.com/r/Bitcoin/comments/1ha43p/just_got_an_interesting_letter_from_my_bank/

Last, be sure to keep track of and handle any tax requirements for your bitcoin exchanges.

[QuantumQrack]

Fuck the bankers.  They are responsible for so much misery in the world.  Follow the money trails.

[shakezula]

Get a new bank, problem solved.

[tunafish]

Get a new bank, problem solved.

+1

[RoadToHell]

http://www.cryptocoinsnews.com/2013/07/12/u-s-bank-is-closing-deposit-accounts-that-is-affiliated-with-bitcoin-buys-or-sells/

The letter doesn't mention bitcoin.  Did they tell you that part in some other communication?

[bronco]

Get a new bank, problem solved.

well, i'm freaking out cause there is no guarantee other bank will not do the same. I'll give wells fargo try. Spoke to them they dont mind bitcoins.

http://www.cryptocoinsnews.com/2013/07/12/u-s-bank-is-closing-deposit-accounts-that-is-affiliated-with-bitcoin-buys-or-sells/

The letter doesn't mention bitcoin.  Did they tell you that part in some other communication?

when i called them to find out what the deal is they say cause i was buying bitcoins. I never told bank i will be using wires to buy bitcoins. I told them i will be buying e-currencies. I believe bitstamp account where i was wiring money to is flagged or something

[halfawake]

Get a new bank, problem solved.

well, i'm freaking out cause there is no guarantee other bank will not do the same. I'll give wells fargo try. Spoke to them they dont mind bitcoins.

http://www.cryptocoinsnews.com/2013/07/12/u-s-bank-is-closing-deposit-accounts-that-is-affiliated-with-bitcoin-buys-or-sells/

The letter doesn't mention bitcoin.  Did they tell you that part in some other communication?

when i called them to find out what the deal is they say cause i was buying bitcoins. I never told bank i will be using wires to buy bitcoins. I told them i will be buying e-currencies. I believe bitstamp account where i was wiring money to is flagged or something

Try the Internet Credit Union out: https://iafcu.org/ - they've gone on record at the Bitcoin 2013 Conference saying that they support Bitcoin, so you shouldn't have to worry about it with them.

[mateo]

Is this the start of US government's war on Bitcoin?

[RandomQ]

I think the war on Bitcoins is only just starting, its a direct threat against BANKS. The only Bank that will support this is the "ANTI-BANKs" IE Credit Unions

[QuantumQrack]

This is actually pretty important.  Does anybody know of a list of bitcoin friendly banks?  i.e. Ones with a large amount of branches?