Gossip Column: Bank of America Closes Daniel Negreanu’s Account; Poker Pro Lashes Out

Six-time WSOP bracelet winner Daniel Negreanu sure knows how to stay in the news. After he was done making a million-dollar bet for his seventh bracelet and bulking up through a vegan diet, he is now in the spotlight after Bank of America (BofA) closed his account.

The Canadian poker pro tweeted on July 8 that the bank had ‘randomly shut down’ his business account.

FYI for Vegas Gamblers using @BankofAmerica

They randomly shut down my business account with no explanation or opportunity for appeal despite no abnormal activity.

Looking into gambler friendly bank @lexicon_bank

Will update… pic.twitter.com/8gMbR1Y5X8

— Daniel Negreanu (@RealKidPoker) July 8, 2020

This isn’t the first time that Negreanu has gotten into a tiff with BofA. It had happened before, in 2015, when the bank had closed his accounts.

Apparently Bank of America no longer wants my business. They are closing all my accounts because I put too much money in them from poker???

— Daniel Negreanu (@RealKidPoker) December 23, 2015

By the number of branches, BofA is the second-largest bank in the country behind JPMorgan Chase. In Nevada, the BofA has 66 brick-and-mortar locations.

The bank’s action was based on a somewhat archaic Patriot Act that states that all deposits, transfers, and withdrawals of $10,000 or more, particularly when conducted frequently as a high-level poker player might be apt to do, raises red flags at banks.

Adding to the drama for legitimate gamblers is an Obama-era regulation that increases scrutiny of potentially fraudulent banking activity in industries financial institutions deem “high risk,” like gambling.

In June 2019, US District Court Judge Paul Barbadoro had ruled that the Wire Act’s prohibitions are confined to sports betting. That’s a federal ruling, and while banks are federally regulated, it appears Negreanu isn’t the first gambler to run into difficulty with a financial institution.

This has happened to many gamblers. They don’t like the large sums being withdrawn to and deposited from casinos apparently ?‍♂️

— Joe Hachem (@JosephHachem) July 8, 2020

Same thing happened to me in 2016 from BOA. Talked to a regional manager who said my account is synonymous with drug dealers or criminals. This was about 3 weeks after the FBI stole $13,000 in cash from me at the Las Vegas airport.

— TokyoSwan (@SwanTokyo) July 8, 2020

For Negreanu or anyone else for that matter, fighting an account closure at a large money center bank is likely a futile endeavor. It’s standard practice for banks to note in their account agreements with customers that the relationship can be terminated at any time. In fact, the bank doesn’t even need to provide the customer with a reason for the account closure.

He received a lot of sympathy from the Twitterati, though, and unsurprisingly BofA got a lot of flak.

If Deutsche Bank is willing to do business with degenerates like Epstein and Trump, they should be ok with online poker

— David (@david_dilbert) July 8, 2020

Their loss. Won’t be patronizing them.

— mrmosconi (@mrmosconi) July 8, 2020

You’ll def have triggered their anti money laundering transaction monitoring but rather than take reasonable steps to understand their client they’ve decided to avoid potential tipping off (were you a money launderer) and instead just de-risk and close the account.

— Ian Grant (@Grunter75) July 8, 2020