Mati ALLin, a YouTuber and crypto psychologist, has claimed that he was denied a bank account due to his past interview with a cryptocurrency founder. He attributed this denial to alleged corruption within the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). This statement was made on X on December 23, 2024.
"I got denied from opening a bank account today because I interviewed a crypto founder on my YouTube channel over 2 years ago," said ALLin, crypto youtuber. "Under the extrajudicial powers of Operation Chokepoint 2.0—the corrupt SEC punishes me for being a witness to a case they're struggling to prove jurisdiction over. Yikes. Can't wait for Trump, Elon and David Sacks to drain the swamp."
ALLin said that the denial of his bank account was linked to an interview conducted "over 2 years ago" with a crypto founder. He cited "the extrajudicial powers of Operation Chokepoint 2.0" and alleged that the SEC's efforts were aimed at "punishing" individuals connected to cryptocurrency cases. ALLin expressed concerns about being targeted merely as a "witness" in a case where the SEC struggled to "prove jurisdiction," raising issues about regulatory overreach affecting free expression and financial access.
According to CoinGeek, "Chokepoint 2.0" is a term used by cryptocurrency advocates to describe what they perceive as a deliberate effort by U.S. regulators to limit banking access for businesses involved in cryptocurrency. The term draws inspiration from Operation Chokepoint, a 2013 initiative by the U.S. Department of Justice intended to restrict banking services to industries considered high-risk, such as payday lending.
Tyler Winklevoss, co-founder of the Gemini cryptocurrency exchange, also reported being "debanked" along with Gemini due to their involvement in the crypto industry. Winklevoss said on X in December 2024 that "they also assassinated several banks because they banked crypto companies," describing these actions as "totally unlawful" and suggesting that the scope of debanking likely exceeds the initially reported 30 cases within the Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) portfolio.
Mati ALLin is known for his work as a YouTube crypto psychologist focusing on sudden wealth syndrome and Hex & PulseChain strategies. He is also the founder of TimePaysMe, HexConference, and PulseChainConf.