OCC Grants Conditional Federal Trust Bank Approvals to Ripple, Circle, and Other Major Crypto Firms

Five leading digital asset companies have received conditional approval from the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) to operate as federally chartered national trust banks, marking a significant milestone for crypto regulation and U.S. dollar stablecoins. The approved firms include Ripple, Circle’s First National Digital Currency Bank, BitGo, Fidelity Digital Assets, and Paxos. Each previously operated under state-level charters and will now transition to conditional federal status, bringing them under direct OCC supervision.

The OCC is the sole federal authority responsible for chartering banks and trust institutions in the United States. This wave of approvals signals a major shift in federal policy toward digital assets, particularly stablecoin issuers. Since the start of President Donald Trump’s administration, the regulator—now led by Comptroller Jonathan Gould—has moved away from a restrictive approach to crypto and toward one that supports innovation within a regulated framework.

In a statement, Gould said the OCC aims to balance traditional and innovative financial services to ensure the federal banking system evolves alongside modern finance. If the firms meet regulatory requirements, they will join roughly 60 national trust banks authorized to perform fiduciary services such as digital asset custody, though they will still face limits compared to full-service national banks.

Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse called the decision “huge news,” highlighting its importance for Ripple’s RLUSD stablecoin and criticizing what he described as anti-competitive pressure from traditional banking interests. Circle, issuer of the $78 billion USDC stablecoin, said the charter would strengthen oversight of its reserves and allow it to expand institutional custody services. Paxos noted that federal regulation would provide greater clarity for issuing, trading, and settling digital assets, building on its long-standing New York DFS charter.

BitGo CEO Mike Belshe described the approvals as the end of the “war on crypto” and the beginning of deeper regulatory integration. The move comes amid broader efforts by the Trump administration to address alleged debanking of crypto firms, an issue the OCC recently acknowledged in a separate report.