Trust Agreement or Certificate of Trust

A trust agreement, sometimes called a declaration of trust or a certificate of trust, is the legal document that establishes a trust. It names the person or people who set up the trust, the trustees who manage the assets held within it, and the beneficiaries who will ultimately benefit from those assets.

A trust is a legal arrangement where one party, the trustee, holds and manages assets on behalf of another party, the beneficiary. Trusts are commonly used for estate planning, asset protection, and business succession purposes. They can hold a wide range of assets, including property, investments, and business interests.

Because a trust can open bank accounts, hold assets, and conduct business in its own name, it is subject to the same corporate identity verification requirements as any other legal entity. We need to understand how the trust is structured, who manages it, and who it ultimately benefits.

Trusts are sometimes used to obscure the true beneficial ownership of assets, which is why they receive close attention during the onboarding process. We are required under FinCEN regulations to identify the trustees who control the trust and the beneficiaries who benefit from it.

The trust agreement or certificate of trust is the document that gives us the information we need to do that. Without it, we cannot establish the legal standing of the trust or verify who is authorized to act on its behalf.

The document you submit must clearly display all of the following:

Any of the following will be accepted, provided they include all of the required information listed above:

• Full executed trust agreement or declaration of trust
• Certificate of trust summarizing key trust details and trustee authority
• Revocable or irrevocable trust document signed by the grantor
• Amended or restated trust agreement where applicable

In many cases, trustees prefer to submit a certificate of trust rather than the full trust document, as the full document may contain sensitive personal information about beneficiaries. A certificate of trust is a condensed version that confirms the key details without revealing the full terms of the trust. This is generally acceptable, provided it contains all of the required information listed above.

Trust structures can be complex, and the documents involved vary quite a bit depending on the type of trust and the state it was established in. If you are unsure what to submit, contact our onboarding support team before gathering your documents. We can advise on what we need based on your specific trust structure.