Community bankers blast proposal to allow JPMorgan Chase to provide services in post offices

Charging that any postal banking deal between the U.S. Postal Service and JPMorgan Chase would be an invitation for corruption, the trade group representing the nation’s community banks on Monday asked the Postal Regulatory Commission to investigate reports of such a deal.

“Any exclusive arrangement, negotiated behind closed doors, to allow a profit-driven entity to leverage the USPS branch network is a formula for corruption and should be a serious concern to all Americans who care about the integrity of our public institutions,” Rebeca Romero Rainey, president/CEO of the Independent Community Bankers of America wrote in a letter to Robert Taub, chairman of the regulatory commission.

A Postal Service spokeswoman last week confirmed that there have been discussions of allowing JPMorgan Chase to provide limited banking services in post offices.

“To clarify, we had early conversations a while ago about what it might look like to lease space on property for a small handful of ATMs,” the spokeswoman said. “There’s no agreement in place to do so and no imminent plans.” She said those discussions took place before the coronavirus crisis developed.

 

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