Coinbase Secures Final OCC Approval for Federal Trust Bank Charter
Published
Coinbase has received final approval from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) to establish its national trust company, Coinbase National Trust Company.
MissedBlock Desk · 3 min read
Coinbase has received final approval from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) to establish its national trust company, Coinbase National Trust Company. This federal charter will enable Coinbase to expand its digital asset custody services for institutional clients under a federal regulatory framework.
The approval, granted last Friday and announced on Monday, builds upon Coinbase’s existing regulated custody operations. The company has held a limited purpose trust charter from the New York Department of Financial Services since 2018. According to Coinbase, the new national trust company will bring clear and consistent federal uniformity to its custody operations, which it described as essential for bringing more of the financial system onchain.
Coinbase emphasized that it is not becoming a commercial bank and will not take retail deposits or engage in fractional reserve banking. The trust company is viewed as another step in building a foundation for the digital asset ecosystem.
This development aligns with a broader trend of cryptocurrency firms seeking federal trust bank charters. Circle received final approval in July for a trust bank to manage reserves behind its USDC stablecoin, and Ripple obtained similar approval last month for a trust bank supporting its RLUSD stablecoin. Other firms are also pursuing charters: Jack Dorsey’s Block applied for a charter to custody Bitcoin in September, Kraken’s parent company Payward filed its application in May, and a trust company linked to World Liberty Financial received conditional approval in August for a charter tied to its USD1 stablecoin.
However, the OCC’s approvals for crypto firms have faced opposition. Senator Elizabeth Warren has argued that these charter approvals are, in her view, illegal. The Independent Community Bankers of America has also filed a lawsuit against the OCC concerning these charter approvals.
Coinbase first applied for the federal charter last year and received conditional approval from the OCC in April. The final approval marks a significant step in the regulatory integration of major crypto firms, though the path forward includes ongoing debate and legal challenges. The full scope and impact of this federal trust bank charter on Coinbase’s operations remain to be seen, as do the outcomes of the legal challenges filed against the OCC.
Why This Matters
The materials describe a narrow update: Coinbase has been granted final approval by the OCC to charter its national trust company, Coinbase National Trust Company. The full scope and impact of the federal trust bank charter on Coinbase’s operations.
Broader Context
Source materials place the factual news in this context: Coinbase is described as the leading crypto custodian globally.