The directors of the SBUS, with Secretary Crawford's imprimatur, promised to refrain from collecting public deposits held in state banks until July 1, 1817. Moreover, they agreed to greatly expand the bank's credit—at a discount of $6 million—before proceeding to collect public debt from the state institutions. In effect, the central bank transformed the private banks into its creditors, inviting them to draw specie from SBUS reserves months before the Bank of the United States assumed its regulatory functions. Under these "ominous terms" the bank was launched—its operational success already at risk.