What Is a Trust Officer?

A trust officer works for a bank or financial institution and deals with the "trust fund" kind of trust, not the "just trust me" kind. If you are creating a trust or if you are the beneficiary of a trust, you will work with a trust officer from the institution where the trust funds are deposited.

A trust is used to give money to others over time. The creator of a trust funds it or provides for money to go into the trust after his death, and the trust is formed by a written document that explains who gets the money, how much they receive and how often it is paid to them. For example, a person might create a trust for his children and provide that each child receives $10,000 a year, paid on the first day of each year.

It is the trust officer who is responsible for making sure that the money in a trust fund is handled correctly as set out in the terms of the trust. The officer must maintain the money that was put into the trust by investing it and monitoring those investments. Liquidating or trading assets as needed and making payments to the beneficiaries when required by the trust are also responsibilities of the trust officer.

This is a fiduciary role, meaning that the trust officer has a duty to the beneficiaries of the trust. The officer must keep current on tax and investment matters to administer the trust to the benefit of the client. No specific degree is required, but a trust officer usually has education and experience in law or finance, and he can earn a professional designation, such as Certified Trust and Financial Adviser, which shows that he has achieved a high level of knowledge in the field.

The trust officer is the contact the beneficiaries can call with questions or to ask for a distribution from the trust. This individual is responsible for maintaining a relationship with the beneficiaries and handling the clients' needs. She also may help sales teams from the bank connect with the client to develop new business.

The responsibility for maintaining the trust in accordance with applicable policies, laws and regulations falls to the trust officer. This means keeping proper paperwork; the trust officer's activities must be documented clearly to show all of his duties were fulfilled.