Circle has received final approval from the US Office of the Comptroller of the Currency to establish a national trust bank, allowing the USDC issuer to expand regulated digital asset custody operations in the US.
The company announced today (Friday) that the new institution will operate under the name Circle National Trust, which has officially been created as First National Digital Currency Bank. Approval comes Circle applies for a National Trust Charter in June 2025.
The decision also represents the first approval among a recent wave of applications from major stablecoin issuers seeking federal trust bank charters. Ripple applied to establish the Ripple National Trust Bank in July last year as part of its plans to support custody services and the RLUSD stablecoin.
Paxos followed with its own order in Augustseeks to convert its existing New York credit charter into a national OCC charter. Circle is the first of the three companies to receive final approval from the regulatory body.
Trust Bank begins offering its custodial services
Commenting on the approval, CEO Jeremy Allaire called the decision a “critical step” in bringing blockchain technology and digital assets “to the heart of the American financial system.”
According to the approved business plan, Circle National Trust will initially provide fiduciary services for custodial digital assets of Circle and its subsidiaries. The bank can later expand these services to a limited set of institutional clients, including banks and other financial institutions, if demand develops.
Circle has received final OCC approval to establish First National Digitalcurrency Bank, N.A., a national trust bank operating as Circle National Trust. It is a major regulatory achievement in the United States that strengthens the USDC infrastructure through federally regulated custody, with reserve… pic.twitter.com/GtThvFV5aW
– Circle (@circle) July 10, 2026
The department looks to federal oversight of the reserves
The trust bank structure could also allow Circle to manage the reserves backing its USDC stablecoin under federal oversight in the future.
The approval expands Circle’s regulatory footprint. The company said it was the first company to obtain a BitLicense from the New York Department of Financial Services in 2015 and the first global stablecoin issuer to comply with the EU Markets Framework in Cryptoassets in 2024.
Circle has also received regulatory approvals in the UK, Singapore, Bermuda, Canada and Abu Dhabi.
This article was written by Tariq Sikdar at www.financemagnates.com.
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