Financial stocks fall as investors get jittery over Trumps call for one-year 10% credit card interest cap

President Trump’s call to cap credit card interest rates at 10% for a year sent shockwaves through Wall Street on Monday, weighing down bank stocks as investors recoiled from a proposal that threatens the industry’s most lucrative profit engine.Shares of JP Morgan Chase had dropped nearly 7% as of midday Monday while Capital One fell 6.5% and Citigroup slid over 3% as investors dumped lenders with heavy exposure to high-interest consumer credit in the wake of Trump’s remarks.Visa fell over 5% while American Express dropped 4.5% and Mastercard dipped about 2% as investors extended the selloff beyond card issuers to the payment networks amid fears a rate cap could choke off spending and transaction volumes.The selloff followed a Truth Social post late Friday in which Trump called for a one-year cap on credit card rates to take effect Jan.20, saying Americans were being “ripped off” as borrowing costs hover near record highs.“Effective January 20, 2026, I, as President of the United States, am calling for a one year cap on Credit Card Interest Rates of 10%,” he announced.

“Coincidentally, the January 20th date will coincide with the one year anniversary of the historic and very successful Trump Administration.”The pressure intensified after Trump warned that lenders failing to comply could face consequences, telling reporters that companies charging exorbitant rates would be “in violation of the law” if they did not fall in line by the deadline.“President Trump pledged to put Joe Biden’s affordability crisis behind us, and the Administration is committed to using every lever of executive power to deliver for the American people,” White Hosue spokesman Kush Desai said when asked for comment Monday.Average interest rates on new credit card offers are hovering above 23%, turning plastic into a cash cow for lenders, according to LendingTree data.Supporters of the proposed cap argue it would deliver massive relief to consumers battered by sky-hi...