Company, often a commercial bank, acting as trustee for individuals and businesses and providing related financial or estate-planning services.
Trust services for individuals commonly include the administration of estates, living trusts (trusts that become effective during the lifetimes of their makers, or settlors), and testamentary trusts (trusts originating in a will). Services for businesses include the administration of corporate bond indentures and corporate pension funds. Trust companies may also serve as corporate stock registrars and as paying agents for the distribution of dividends.