Democrats controlling the U.S. House of Representatives issued subpoenas to Deutsche Bank, which kept lending money to financially troubled Donald Trump, and other banks as part of investigations into Trump's questionable finances.
The House Intelligence Committee and the House Financial Services Committee subpoenaed the records to see the extent, if any, of foreign influence over Trump, said House Intelligence Chairman Adam Schiff, (D-CA).
Deutsche Bank has long been an of interest to Democrats. The German bank lent Trump hundreds of millions of dollars for property development. It's also been under scrutiny for its role in Russian money laundering.
Democrats want to know if Russia has had financial leverage over Trump via Deutsche Bank and its loans.
In addition to the Deutsche Bank subpoena, Democrats subpoenaed JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America and Citigroup, among others. They're trying to uncover information on Russian money laundering.
The subpoenas are the latest attempts by House Democrats trying to obtain Trump's financial records. Democrats have also made legal requests for Trump's tax returns to see if Russia has financial influence over him.
"As part of our oversight authority and authorized investigation into allegations of potential foreign influence on the U.S. political process, the House Intelligence Committee today issued subpoenas to multiple financial institutions in coordination with the House Financial Services Committee, including a friendly subpoena to Deutsche Bank, which has been cooperative with the committees," said Schiff in a statement.
House Financial Services Committee Chairwoman Maxine Waters (D-CA) said her committee takes potential manipulation of the U.S. financial system very seriously.
She said the Financial Services Committee is exploring these matters, "including as they may involve the president and his associates, as thoroughly as possible pursuant to its oversight authority, and will follow the facts wherever they may lead."
Deutsche Bank is being targeted by Democrats because of its lengthy and substantial business relationship with Trump. These business dealings began when Trump was still a private citizen but seems to have continued when Trump became president.
Deutsche Bank said it's complying with the request from House Democrats.
"We remain committed to providing appropriate information to all authorized investigations in a manner consistent with our legal obligations," said Deutsche Bank spokeswoman Kerrie McHugh. "If you have questions concerning the investigative activities of the committees, we would refer you to the committees themselves."
