Wise turns to GENIUS Act after OCC rejects U.S. bank charter

Wise plans to submit a new application for a U.S. national trust bank charter under the GENIUS Act after the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency rejected its first bid. Summary Wise plans a fresh U.S. charter application under the GENIUS Act after the OCC rejection. The OCC cited weak AML controls, management gaps, and limited national banking experience in denial. William Blair expects Wise to remain rail-agnostic rather than make stablecoins its core business model. The July 21 decision ended the payments company’s effort to create Wise National Trust in Austin, Texas. Wise disclosed the outcome on July 24 and said its current U.S. services continue without change. The company still operates through money-transmitter licences across 48 states and four territories. The new filing will use the federal framework for payment stablecoins rather than the structure in Wise’s original June 2025 application. Wise said the earlier plan relied on access to Federal Reserve payment systems that is no longer practical. Its London-listed shares fell as much as 10% after the denial became public. Wise said it had strengthened financial-crime controls since filing the original plan and woul...