U.S. Bancorp, with total assets exceeding $601 billion as of September 30, 2022, is the parent company of U.S. Bank N.A., the fifth largest commercial bank in the United States. As of September 30, 2022, U.S. Bancorp operated over 2,200 branch offices in 26 states. A network of specialized U.S. Bancorp offices across the nation provides a comprehensive line of banking, brokerage, insurance, investment, mortgage, trust and payment services products to consumers, businesses, and institutions.
U.S. Bank has one of the largest corporate trust businesses in the country with office locations in 48 domestic and 2 international cities. The Pooling and Servicing Agreement and the indenture will be administered from U.S. Bank’s corporate trust office located at 190 South LaSalle Street, 7th Floor, Chicago, IL 60603.
U.S. Bank has provided corporate trust services since 1924. As of September 30, 2022, U.S. Bank was acting as trustee with respect to over 124,000 issuances of securities with an aggregate outstanding principal balance of over $5.5 trillion. This portfolio includes corporate and municipal bonds, mortgage-backed and asset-backed securities and collateralized debt obligations.
As trustee, paying agent, and registrar with respect to the master trust, U.S. Bank Trust Co. will make each certificateholders’ monthly statement available to the certificateholders and noteholders via the master trust trustee’s internet website at https://pivot.usbank.com. Noteholders with questions may direct them to the master trust trustee’s bondholder services group at (800) 934-6802.
As of September 30, 2022, U.S. Bank (and its affiliate U.S. Bank Trust National Association) was acting as indenture trustee, registrar and paying agent on 39 issuances of credit card receivables-backed securities with an outstanding aggregate principal balance of approximately $24,148,100,000.
U.S. Bank N.A. and other large financial institutions have been sued in their capacity as trustee or successor trustee for certain residential mortgage-backed securities (“RMBS”) trusts. The complaints, primarily filed by investors or investor groups against U.S. Bank N.A. and similar institutions, allege the trustees caused losses to investors as a result of alleged failures by the sponsors, mortgage loan sellers and servicers to comply with the governing agreements for these RMBS trusts. Plaintiffs generally assert causes of action based upon the trustees’ purported failures to enforce repurchase obligations of mortgage loan sellers for alleged breaches of representations and warranties, notify securityholders of purported events of default allegedly caused by breaches of servicing standards by mortgage loan servicers and abide by a heightened standard of care following alleged events of default.
U.S. Bank N.A. denies liability and believes that it has performed its obligations under the RMBS trusts in good faith, that its actions were not the cause of losses to investors, that it has meritorious defenses, and it has contested and intends to continue contesting the plaintiffs’ claims vigorously. However, U.S. Bank N.A. cannot assure you as to the outcome of any of the litigation, or the possible impact of these litigations on the trustee or the RMBS trusts.
On March 9, 2018, a law firm purporting to represent fifteen Delaware statutory trusts (the “DSTs”) that issued securities backed by student loans (the “Student Loans”) filed a lawsuit in the Delaware Court of Chancery against U.S. Bank N.A. in its capacities as indenture trustee and successor special servicer, and three other institutions in their respective transaction capacities, with respect to the DSTs and the Student Loans. This lawsuit is captioned The National Collegiate Student Loan Master Trust I, et al. v. U.S. Bank National Association, et al., C.A. No. 2018-0167-JRS (Del. Ch.) (the “NCMSLT Action”). The complaint, as amended on June 15, 2018, alleged that the DSTs have been harmed as a result of purported misconduct or omissions by the defendants concerning administration of the trusts and special servicing of the Student Loans. Since the filing of the NCMSLT Action, certain Student Loan borrowers have made assertions against U.S. Bank N.A. concerning special servicing that appear to be based on certain allegations made on behalf of the DSTs in the NCMSLT Action.
U.S. Bank N.A. has filed a motion seeking dismissal of the operative complaint in its entirety with prejudice pursuant to Chancery Court Rules 12(b)(1) and 12(b)(6) or, in the alternative, a stay of the case while other prior filed disputes involving the DSTs and the Student Loans are litigated. On November 7, 2018, the Court ruled that the case should be stayed in its entirety pending resolution of the first-filed cases. On January 21, 2020, the Court entered an order consolidating for pretrial purposes the NCMSLT Action and three other lawsuits pending in the Delaware Court of Chancery concerning the DSTs and the Student Loans, which remains pending.
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