Several major digital-asset companies have sought national trust bank charters in the United States as part of a broader move toward federal supervision. These charters, issued by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), provide nationwide oversight in place of separate state licences. Anchorage Digital currently holds the only approved OCC charter among crypto-native firms.
Circle, Ripple, and BitGo are among the companies that have filed applications or charter-conversion documents to operate as national trust banks. Circle aims to oversee USDC reserves under federal supervision, Ripple has sought a charter for its payment-infrastructure operations, and BitGo is pursuing a transition from state to federal oversight for its institutional custody business.
U.S. regulatory context and industry response
The movement toward federal charters continues in parallel with the implementation of the GENIUS Act, which sets national standards for stablecoin issuers in the United States.
Although the law does not require companies to obtain banking charters, a national trust bank structure provides a consistent supervisory framework and reduces reliance on external banking partners. It authorises digital-asset custody, settlement, and fiduciary services but does not allow deposit-taking or traditional lending in the manner of a full-service bank.
Not all firms have opted for this route. Kraken, one of the largest U.S. cryptocurrency exchanges, has stated that it will maintain relationships with existing banks rather than pursue its own federal charter. This approach illustrates the range of regulatory strategies within a sector adapting to evolving policy requirements.
Developments in Europe
The move toward more formal oversight in the United States exists alongside regulatory changes in other major markets. Europe’s Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) framework introduces uniform licensing and compliance rules for digital-asset service providers across EU member states. MiCA does not require banking licences but establishes a single regulatory regime for authorisation, conduct, and operational standards.
The framework is being implemented in stages as EU authorities publish the necessary technical standards. Firms operating in Europe are preparing for the transition from national rules to an EU-wide system. These parallel developments show that major jurisdictions are formalising clearer regulatory structures for digital-asset businesses, each using its own approach and timeline.
