US Treasury Secretary has said that a proposed executive order requiring banks to collect citizenship information from customers is “in process”.
speaking with Semafor, defended the idea of expanding customer verification requirements in the banking system.
“And I don’t think it’s unreasonable, because why don’t we have information on who’s in our banking system?” he said.
“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?”
The draft order was first reported earlier this year and would require banks to collect additional identity documents, including proof of citizenship such as a passport, from account holders. REAL ID credentials would not qualify, as they do not establish citizenship.
US banking rules already require identity verification
At present, US law does not require citizenship documents to open a bank account. Instead, financial institutions operate under “Know Your Customer” (KYC) regulations aimed at preventing fraud, money laundering, and terrorism financing.
Banks typically collect Social Security numbers or Individual Taxpayer Identification Numbers (ITIN), along with names, dates of birth, and addresses under existing frameworks such as the Bank Secrecy Act and the USA PATRIOT Act.
The proposed change would add citizenship verification on top of existing onboarding requirements.
Scope of proposal remains unclear
It remains uncertain whether the proposed rules would apply only to undocumented migrants or also to non-citizens legally residing and working in the United States.
The draft would expand documentation requirements beyond current standards, potentially requiring all customers to provide citizenship proof at account opening.
