The Bank Secrecy Act is broken. It must be reformed in line with original intent
The Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) is criticized for being outdated and causing unnecessary disruptions in lawful banking activities. Financial institutions face excessive scrutiny and penalties, leading them to overreport suspicious activities. Proposed reforms aim to modernize the BSA to better align with its original intent and improve law enforcement's ability to target actual threats.
- ▪The BSA has resulted in excessive scrutiny and account closures for customers.
- ▪Financial institutions filed over 28.7 million reports under the BSA in fiscal year 2025, but only about 275 IRS criminal investigations resulted from these reports.
- ▪Senate banking committee Chairman Tim Scott has proposed the STREAMLINE Act to raise outdated reporting thresholds.
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Under the Trump administration, Washington has taken meaningful steps to reform the outdated policies that have contributed to politically motivated debanking. Under the guise of preventing financial crime, the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) has resulted in excessive scrutiny, account closures, and other disruptions of lawful banking activities for customers while creating costly legal and compliance burdens for financial institutions. Recommended Stories Victims of sexual violence can’t trust Ken Paxton Actions speak louder than words: Jewish New Yorkers are tired of Mamdani’s empty statements Maritime Day is a reminder: Strong ports mean a strong America How did we get here? In the course of complying with their legal obligations under the BSA, financial institutions are often compelled to err…
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