Wise disclosed OCC denial of national trust bank application, shares fell 10%. Company refiles under GENIUS Act framework for stablecoin issuance.
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Wise disclosed on July 24 that the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency denied its national trust bank application. The fintech said it will refile under the GENIUS Act stablecoin framework.
Shares of Wise (LSE:WISE) dropped about 10% on the day, according to Investing.com.
The denial came down to two issues, the company said in its disclosure.
Structural: the Federal Reserve in May effectively paused granting master accounts to uninsured trust banks. Without direct Fed access, the trust bank model lost a key advantage.
Historical: a multi-state consent order from July 2025 flagged weaknesses in Wise's anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing controls. Regulators took note.
The Block covered both points from the filing.
Wise is now aiming for a charter under the GENIUS Act, a federal stablecoin framework that would allow national trust banks to issue dollar tokens under OCC supervision.
What such a charter would require, based on the framework's typical provisions, includes a ring-fenced subsidiary dedicated to issuance and custody, reserves held in high-quality assets, regular attestation and audit, and compliance with capital requirements.
A charter would not guarantee a master account. The Federal Reserve controls that separately. The Fed's pause on new master accounts for uninsured trust banks remains a moving target.
Nor would it erase Wise's past compliance issues. Remediation must be sustainable and independently verified before examiners will sign off on a new charter.
Investors absorbed the news quickly. The 10% share drop reflected the longer, riskier path to a regulated U.S. product and the uncertainty around master account access.
Wise said it expects to refile under the GENIUS Act. No timeline has been set.
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