Citizens Bank to cut ties with CoreCivic and GEO after a fierce public pressure campaign
Citizens said reduced financial needs at CoreCivic and GEO made the exit a business decision after advocates and city councils pressed for divestment.
- On Friday, Citizens Bank announced it will end credit facilities with CoreCivic and The GEO Group, two private prison operators that manage detention centers for federal immigration enforcement.
- The De-ICE Citizens Bank Coalition led months of protests and divestment, with individuals and municipalities withdrawing more than $350 million in recent months to oppose the bank's financing of detention centers under the Trump administration.
- Municipalities including Montclair and Jersey City fueled divestment by withdrawing nearly $91 million and more than $265 million respectively, while the Greater Boston Interfaith Organization pulled $3 million in protest.
- Citizens claimed the exit was a "business decision" driven by changed capital needs and federal purchases of prison facilities, stating it does not reflect a shift in view regarding the companies' "business models or operations."
- While spokesperson Peyton Fleming called the move a "huge win," activists remain skeptical, demanding written assurances and a timeline to ensure Citizens fully severs ties with the prison operators.
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Citizens Bank is parting ways with two ICE contractors
Signs protesting Citizens Bank's financial relationships with private prison companies are seen placed along a fence outside the company's Providence headquarters on April 23, 2026. (Photo by Christopher Shea/Rhode Island Current)Following months of protests outside its branches and Providence headquarters, Rhode Island’s largest bank announced Friday it is cutting its financial ties with two for-profit prison operators that have detained immigr…
Citizens will stop lending to firms linked to ICE detention
The regional bank faced months of pressure to end its relationship with CoreCivic and The Geo Group, two of the country's largest private-prison operators. On Friday, it said it would "exit the credit facilities" it has in place for those companies, attributing the decision to business factors, not pressure from activists.
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