Federal Regulators Give Green Light to Coinbase's Bid for National Bank Charter
In a landmark development, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) has granted conditional approval to Coinbase, a leading cryptocurrency exchange, to establish Coinbase National Trust Company, a federally chartered trust institution. This significant milestone marks a major breakthrough for the company, as it seeks to expand its custody operations and market infrastructure services.
The OCC's conditional approval is specifically designed for Coinbase to provide custody and market infrastructure services, without accepting consumer deposits or operating as a traditional bank. According to Greg Tusar, Co-CEO of Coinbase Institutional, this federal charter provides "regulatory uniformity" to the company's custody and market infrastructure business, which has been in development for years.
Coinbase had filed its application for a national trust charter with the OCC in October last year, seeking to upgrade its existing limited-purpose trust charter issued by the New York Department of Financial Services. The company's institutional division, Coinbase Prime, currently operates under this state-level authorization, providing digital asset custody services.
The federal charter is a significant upgrade, as it unlocks new opportunities for Coinbase's institutional division, which reported $245.7 billion in assets under custody as of June 2025. This represents approximately 7% of the entire cryptocurrency market, according to figures from the company's charter filing. As Tusar explained, the OCC certification is essential for the company to expand its services to a broader range of clients, including asset managers and hedge funds.
However, the conditional approval is subject to certain conditions, which Coinbase must satisfy before the charter becomes operational. The company must convene its inaugural board meeting, implement corporate bylaws, set up payment infrastructure, and complete a pre-launch examination by the OCC. Coinbase has committed to working closely with OCC regulators to meet these conditions.
The OCC's conditional approval is part of a broader trend, as several digital asset companies, including BitGo, Circle Internet Group, Fidelity Digital Assets, Ripple, and Paxos, have received similar approvals in recent months. Additionally, EDX Markets and World Liberty Financial have submitted national trust charter applications, seeking to establish themselves as federally chartered trust institutions.
The federal charter is expected to provide a robust infrastructure for emerging payment solutions and complementary financial services, benefiting both institutional partners and retail users. While Congress has been working on market structure legislation, the OCC's approval fills a regulatory gap in the supervision of crypto custody providers, without requiring completed legislative action. As the cryptocurrency market continues to evolve, the OCC's conditional approval of Coinbase's national trust charter application is a significant step towards providing greater regulatory clarity and uniformity.