US Banking Regulator Opens Bank Charter Path to Crypto Firms
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency says companies engaged in lawful digital-asset activities should be able to pursue national bank charters, putting crypto firms directly inside Washington’s broader push to revive new-bank formation.
Comptroller Jonathan Gould said firms engaged in legally permissible activities, including “digital assets and other novel technologies,” should have a path to becoming a national bank, adding: “America and the OCC are once again open for business.”
The statement does not automatically approve crypto companies as banks. Applicants still have to pass the OCC’s normal chartering review, including scrutiny of management, capital, business plans, compliance and financial risk.
Key Takeaways
- Crypto firms can apply for federal bank charters.
- Applications still face full regulatory review.
- Trust banks and insured deposit-taking banks follow different paths.
- Digital-asset companies are already in the OCC pipeline.
Crypto Firms Are Already in the Charter Pipeline
Gould’s comments arrive with a growing digital-asset licensing queue already visible at the OCC.
The regulator’s digital-assets licensing database tracks applicants planning to offer digital-asset products or services, including crypto-assets.
Regulatory Tracker
OCC Crypto Trust Bank Pipeline
Zero Hash provides another example of the demand for federal status. As Coindoo reported in March, the company applied for a national trust bank charter covering services including digital-asset custody, staking, transfers and stablecoin-related activity.
Crypto is only one part of the broader charter revival. The OCC says it has received 40 de novo applications over the past 18 months and, in many cases, reached decisions within 120 days after receiving a complete application.
A National Trust Bank Is Not a Full-Service Bank
Many crypto firms seeking federal banking status are not trying to become conventional banks that take retail deposits and make ordinary loans.
National trust banks offer a narrower route centered on permitted trust-company activities such as custody and related financial services. The OCC’s 2026 final trust-bank rule confirmed that national banks limited to trust-company operations may also conduct qualifying non-fiduciary activities without expanding the OCC’s underlying chartering authority.
Coinbase shows what that looks like in practice. As Coindoo explained following its conditional approval, a national trust charter can bring custody and related activities under an OCC federal charter without turning the company into a conventional deposit-taking bank.
Where the FDIC Fits In
The regulatory path changes when insured deposits enter the picture.
The OCC grants national bank charters, while the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation separately decides whether an institution qualifies for federal deposit insurance. The FDIC reviews applications based on factors including capital, management, the business plan and potential risk to the Deposit Insurance Fund.
The new OCC announcement specifically praises the FDIC’s effort to make that process clearer for new banks. Chairman Travis Hill has also said the agency wants to encourage de novo formation and approach innovative business models with an open mind while keeping the statutory standards for insured institutions intact.
- A national trust charter can support permitted custody and trust activities without necessarily involving insured deposits.
- An insured deposit-taking national bank must obtain its OCC charter and separately satisfy the FDIC’s deposit-insurance process.
The FDIC changes are therefore most directly relevant to digital-asset applicants that plan to take federally insured deposits.
Crypto Is No Longer Supposed to Fail the Test Before It Starts
Federal supervisors are also moving away from using reputation risk to restrict relationships with lawful businesses.
The OCC and FDIC have removed reputation risk as a basis for adverse supervisory action, shifting the focus toward identifiable financial, operational and compliance risks instead of whether a business is politically controversial.
Digital-asset applicants still have to demonstrate competent management, adequate financial resources and controls capable of handling sanctions, money laundering, cybersecurity and operational risks.
For crypto, the practical change is straightforward: exposure to digital assets should trigger a risk assessment, not an automatic stop sign.
Federal Banking Is Becoming a Real Option for Crypto
Many U.S. crypto businesses have historically operated through combinations of state money-transmission licences, state trust charters and specialist regulatory regimes.
A national charter offers a different route: an OCC federal charter and a framework for bringing permitted activities such as custody, settlement and related financial services into the national banking system.
The trade-off is heavier supervision. Firms choosing that path accept bank-level regulatory scrutiny in exchange for operating within an established federal structure.
The growing application queue shows that some of the industry’s largest infrastructure providers consider that worthwhile. Gould’s “open for business” message now has a measurable test: which of those applicants can satisfy the OCC’s standards and make it through the charter process.
- Disclaimer: This article is for informational and educational purposes only. A federal bank charter is not guaranteed for any crypto firm, and applicants remain subject to OCC review, applicable banking laws, and separate FDIC requirements where insured deposits are involved.
Kosta has reported on cryptocurrency markets and blockchain infrastructure since 2020, bringing over six years of hands-on experience in the crypto industry built through daily tracking of markets, trends, and emerging blockchain developments. Specializing in Bitcoin on-chain analysis, institutional ETF flows, and digital asset price action, his work at Coindoo has been cited by other news agencies and consistently covers market developments with a focus on data-driven reporting across Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, and XRP. Over the years, Kosta has contributed to multiple crypto media outlets in different regions, authoring over 6,000 articles across the sector. His reporting spans cryptocurrency markets and the broader fintech industry, tracking not only price action but also the technological and regulatory forces shaping the ecosystem. To support his analysis, Kosta actively leverages on-chain data and metrics from leading platforms such as Santiment, Glassnode, and CryptoQuant, enabling deeper, evidence-based market insights. He believes in the power of transparency and the data that underpins the blockchain ecosystem. His academic background in Marketing Management from Denmark further complements his analytical approach, adding a strong understanding of communication strategy and content positioning to his work.
