JP Morgan Chase cuts ties with Kanye West and Yeezy

The bank has asked the rapper to transfer his business elsewhere by November 21

Kanye West's clothing empire Yeezy suffers another blow as an increasing number of business partners walk away from deals. AFP

There's more bad news for Kanye West, who's recently been making headlines for a string of controversies.

The New York Times confirmed news of US bank JP Morgan Chase severing ties with the rapper and his Yeezy Inc brand, effective November 21.

Although the decision by the bank predates the latest round of questionable behaviour, which led to his Twitter and Instagram accounts being locked, it comes amid troubled times for West whose business partners have said they're evaluating their relationship with him.

West's hugely successful nine-year business relationship with adidas is currently under review, after the German sportswear company said it had taken the decision last month “after repeated efforts to privately resolve the situation”.

West has publicly attacked the brand, accusing it of "stealing" his designs, and made accusations against its executives.

Last month, West said he was ending his partnership with clothing brand Gap, accusing the firm of failing to honour the terms of the deal.

West signed a 10-year deal with Gap in 2020 to create a line of clothing under the Yeezy Gap brand. The first product from the line — a blue puffer jacket — sold out within hours of launch in June last year.

The JP Morgan Chase news comes after US conservative commentator, Candace Owens, shared a letter from the bank, dated September 20, on Twitter.

"We asked that you act promptly transfer your business to another financial institution before November 21, 2022," the bank says.

Owens also attended West's show during Paris Fashion Week, where the pair were photographed together wearing "White Lives Matter" T-shirts. The slogans drew widespread condemnation.

West followed the backlash with an anti-Semantic tirade on social media, which led to his being locked out of Twitter and Instagram.

West then appeared on Fox News where he floated a series of conspiracy theories touching on anti-Semitic tropes. The broadcast of a subsequent appearance on the LeBron James and Maverick Carter's talk show The Shop was also cancelled.

“After talking to Kanye directly, I believed he was capable of a thoughtful discussion about his recent statements and actions. Unfortunately, he used The Shop to reiterate more hate speech and very ugly stereotypes,” Carter said. “We have made the decision not to air this episode of any of Kanye’s remarks.”

On Tuesday, tech website Motherboard, aired clips of the Fox News interview that were edited out. The clip shows West making a series of bizarre claims to host Tucker Carlson, including how “fake children” were planted outside his house to manipulate his children.

He also claimed one of his children was “kidnapped” on their birthday so that West was not able to see her.