(30 July 2026 – Global) Wise’s application to become a national trust bank in the United States was rejected by the US Office of the Comptroller of the Currency amid significant changes in financial policy.
The group’s application is incompatible with the Federal Reserve’s new policies for payment system access and as a national trust bank Wise sought to settle US Dollar payments directly with the Federal Reserve.
The OCC raised concerns over Wise’s anti-money laundering (AML) controls and management’s lack of familiarity with banking laws.
“Wise’s application presented “significant supervisory and compliance concerns including longstanding deficiencies in anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing controls in the US. The proposed management team and board lack sufficient expertise in banking regulation, fiduciary activities and anti-money laundering requirements” the OCC said in a statement.
Wise plans to submit a new application for a national trust bank charter under the GENIUS Act framework encompassing digital assets such as stablecoins and its US operations will continue normally under existing money transmitter licenses despite this setback and prior regulatory scrutiny over its AML programs.
“Our infrastructure is well positioned to interoperate with digital assets alongside existing payment rails. With the Federal Reserve generally pausing account access for an uninsured trust bank, the approach in our application became non-viable” Wise said in a statement.
“We have invested significantly in enhancing our processes and controls globally and in the US since the original application for the trust charter was prepared, including those to prevent financial crime alongside other forms of risk. Preventing bad actors from using financial institutions like Wise is of the utmost importance to us.”