The post Ripple and Circle Get US Trust Bank Approval appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com.

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), which is one of the main US bank regulators, has recently given conditional approval for five crypto companies to become national trust banks. These five companies are; Ripple, Circle, Bitgo, Paxos and Fidelity Digital Assets. As it is currently conditional approval, each company must still meet further requirements before launching. Of course, the only company of these five that has a native token that can fluctuate in price is Ripple (XRP). Circle has USDC but this is a stablecoin. The five companies were all given conditional approval on the same day, as the OCC stated that new entrants help modernize and diversify the banking system. Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse called the approval a “massive step forward” as Ripple looks to become a core financial infrastructure company. What is a National Trust Bank? A trust bank is allowed to hold assets for customers, and settle payments. Most importantly they have national approval to do this instead of having to gain approval on a state by state basis. National trust banks are not allowed to take cash deposits or make loans. So Ripple would not yet be a full-service bank however if given the approval it would certainly set them on the path to becoming one. Pushback from Traditional Banks Traditional banks have expressed concern about the inclusion of digital asset companies being allowed under the supervision of the OCC. The Banking Policy Institute questioned whether crypto companies were being given a lighter touch than traditional banks, citing the failure of several exchanges such as FTX crypto exchange. What is clear however is that crypto companies are increasingly entering the traditional banking space, and that many banks had requested the OCC to reject the applications. Brad Garlinghouse retorted that these banks actions were…

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Filed under: News - @ December 17, 2025 7:27 am