Wise’s US Banking Licence Bid Rejected by OCC, Shares Tumble | LeapRate
Wise, the London-founded cross-border payments group, has had its application for a US national trust bank charter rejected by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), dealing a blow to the fintech’s American expansion ambitions.
Wise shares fell as much as 10-11% in London trading following the announcement, before paring some losses.
The decision comes just months after the company shifted its primary stock market listing from London to Nasdaq, a move it had framed as central to capturing its “biggest market opportunity.”
According to Wise, the OCC’s rejection stemmed from the Federal Reserve’s shifting policy stance on payment system access for uninsured trust banks — a stance that has hardened materially since the application was first submitted in June last year.
“With the Federal Reserve generally pausing account access for an uninsured trust bank, the approach in our application became non-viable,” the company said.
The regulator also referenced a US consent order issued last year over compliance shortcomings, though Wise says it has since overhauled its financial crime and customer due diligence controls both globally and in the US.
Crucially, Wise confirmed the setback will not disrupt its existing US operations, which continue under licences spanning 48 states and four territories. The company now intends to refile under the GENIUS Act framework, which governs digital-asset and stablecoin infrastructure, arguing its payment rails are well-suited to interoperate with such systems.
Wise processed over $240 billion in cross-border payments last year for roughly 19 million customers. Rival Revolut is also pursuing a fresh US banking charter after an earlier attempt was abandoned, underscoring how the US has become a key battleground for European fintechs.
