Major cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase has successfully upgraded its conditional status to receive full approval for a national trust bank charter from the US Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. The authorization allows the Coinbase National Trust to operate under a complete federal trust charter, following provisional approval granted earlier this year in April.
Following similar approval obtained by Ripple last month, a growing number of digital asset companies are pursuing federal trust bank charters under the OCC. Other firms advancing through the regulatory process include Circle Internet Group, Stripe-owned Bridge, Crypto.com, Paxos, BitGo, and Fidelity Digital Assets, alongside World Liberty Financial.
This influx of approvals has faced opposition from traditional financial institutions. The Independent Community Bankers of America filed a lawsuit in a Washington, DC federal court against the OCC, challenging a rule allowing national trust banks to perform certain non-fiduciary tasks and arguing that crypto companies gain federal banking credibility without traditional banking requirements.
For crypto readers, these developments highlight an ongoing shift toward federal regulatory integration for major digital asset firms, alongside mounting friction between the traditional banking sector and federal regulators over digital asset oversight.