An executive order requiring banking institutions to collect citizenship information is reportedly in the works.
During an interview with Semafor, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent revealed that the Trump administration is currently in the process of drafting an order to require banks to gather proof of citizenship from account holders.
“It’s in process. And I don’t think it’s unreasonable, because: Why don’t we have information on who’s in our banking system? I have a place in the UK; they want to know who lives in every apartment. And how do we know that it’s not part of a foreign terrorist organization?” Bessent explained.
The outlet had previously reported on the subject in February, citing “people familiar with the talks.”
“The policy would be retroactive, which means banks would have to solicit documentation from current customers as well as future ones, the people said. REAL IDs, which do not prove citizenship, would not be considered eligible,” the article reads.
At the time, White House spokesperson Kush Desai refused to confirm or deny that such discussions were underway, saying that “any reporting about potential policymaking that has not been officially announced by the White House is baseless speculation.”
“Verifying every bank customer’s citizenship status would be unworkable,” one person “familiar with the talks” said. “Such a mandate could force every bank in America to solicit documentation that many everyday Americans do not have on hand. To put that into perspective, the US government has spent the last 20 years trying to encourage adoption of the REAL ID, and even that form of documentation does not constitute proof of citizenship.”
Another called it a logistical “nightmare.”
During the same interview, he also called for a “wait and see” approach to cutting interest rates.
“Do I think rates should be lowered? Eventually. I think now that we have to wait and see. But I think as we went into January [and] came out of January and February — the economy was very strong,” he pointed out, adding that currently “the Fed is doing the right thing by sitting and watching” to see what happens with the Iran conflict.
“Bessent said he’s confident recent price increases won’t permanently alter how consumers view the economy. The US government said Friday that inflation rose three times faster in March than it did in February amid surging oil and gas costs. Inflation excluding food and energy, however, rose slightly less than forecasters had anticipated,” Semafor reported.
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Sierra Marlee is a millennial whose hunger for the truth in a world of fake news has led her to write. Marlee also contributes to BizPac Review.
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