Scott Bessent sends a shocking message to American banks

Opening a bank account in the United States does not require proof of citizenship. That may be about to change.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent confirmed on April 14 that an executive order requiring banks to collect citizenship information from their customers is "in process," according to Bloomberg. Bessent made the remarks at a dinner hosted by Semafor in Washington and later at the CNBC Invest in America Forum, according to CNBC.

"I don't think it's unreasonable, because: Why don't we have information on who's in our banking system?" Bessent said, according to Bloomberg.

What Bessent actually said

Bessent was direct about where responsibility would fall. "If Treasury and the banking regulators say it's their job, it's their job," he said, according to CNBC. He also said "every other country does it," pointing to international comparisons to argue the U.S. is behind the curve.

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He offered a specific example. "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?" he said, according to The Hill.

The executive order has been under discussion for months and took a significant step closer to reality with Bessent's public confirmation, according to CNBC. It is part of a broader Trump administration push to link immigration enforcement to financial system access, including efforts tied to voting and Census data collection, according to CNBC.

What would actually change for banks and customers

Currently, citizenship documents are not required to open a bank account in the United States. Banks verify identity under Know Your Customer rules mandated by the Bank Secrecy Act and the USA PATRIOT Act, collecting Social Security numbers or Individual Taxpayer Identification Numbers, names, dates of birth, and addresses, according to CNBC. Citizenship status is an entirely different category of data.

Under the proposed executive order, banks could be required to collect passports as proof of citizenship, according to the Baltimore Sun. Notably, REAL IDs would not qualify under the requirement because they do not prove citizenship, according to The Hill, citing Semafor.

The scope question is significant. There are only approximately 183 million U.S. passports in circulation in a country with a population of more than 340 million people. If the order applies retroactively to existing customers, banks would need to obtain citizenship proof from people who already have accounts, not just new applicants, according to the Daily Beast.

What this means for banks operationally

For financial institutions, this is not just a political headline. It is a potential compliance overhaul. New document collection systems, staff training, customer communication protocols, and data storage requirements would all come with costs.

Banks already carry the weight of extensive anti-money laundering and fraud detection obligations. Adding citizenship verification creates a new category of data with its own legal, privacy, and reputational dimensions. Institutions could find themselves caught between government mandates and customer backlash, particularly if the rule applies broadly to existing account holders.

Key details on the proposed executive order:

• Status: "in process," confirmed by Bessent on April 14, according to Bloomberg
• Venue: Semafor dinner, Washington, April 14, and CNBC Invest in America Forum, according to CNBC
• Likely required document: passport, according to Baltimore Sun
• REAL IDs: not eligible, they do not prove citizenship, according to The Hill
• U.S. passports in circulation: approximately 183 million in a population of 340 million, according to Bloomberg
• Current account requirement: identity verification only, not citizenship, according to CNBC
• If retroactive: existing customers would also need to provide citizenship proof, according to Daily Beast

The broader policy context

Citizenship verification is already common in other countries. In the European Union, a national ID card or passport can be used to open a new account, according to Bloomberg. Bessent has used that international standard to frame the U.S. proposal as a reasonable alignment rather than a radical departure.

For investors and analysts watching the financial sector, Bessent's public confirmation that the order is actively being prepared is itself a signal. Even before a final rule is written, banks will likely begin assessing compliance readiness, onboarding system requirements, and the customer communication challenges that come with a change of this scope.

The question of whether the executive order arrives narrowly targeted or broadly written will determine how disruptive this becomes. Either way, Bessent's message to the banking sector was unambiguous: be ready.

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This story was originally published April 17, 2026 at 6:33 AM.