In November, a conspiracy popular among crypto acolytes burst into the tech mainstream as Marc Andreessen spread the gospel of “Operation Chokepoint 2.0” on Joe Rogan's podcast. Over the three-plus hour episode, the a16z cofounder spoke of the plot by financial regulators under the Biden administration to cut off banking access to the crypto industry because of its politically disfavored status. a16z crypto later published a post defining “debanking” as a “tool or weapon” that can be “systematically wielded” by politicians and agencies to neuter entire sectors.
Crypto VC Nic Carter first popularized (and named) the theory of Operation Chokepoint 2.0 in early 2023, soon after the collapse of FTX, as regulators like the Federal Reserve and FDIC began to issue public guidance about the risks that banks face by working with the volatile crypto industry. (He just published an op-ed in Fortune yesterday if you want to read his full take.)
