The Independent Community Bankers of America is pushing back hard against crypto exchanges applying for national trust bank charters. This week, the trade group told the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency to rescind recent actions that allow digital-asset firms to operate as federally chartered trust banks. ICBA calls the move a threat to financial stability and consumer protections.
The trust bank charter play
National trust bank charters let companies hold assets for customers without meeting the full set of requirements that regular banks face. Crypto exchanges see them as a way to offer custody and lending services under a single federal regulator, sidestepping a patchwork of state money-transmitter licenses. But community bankers say that's exactly the problem — handing a trust charter to a crypto firm, they argue, means the OCC is blessing a business model that lacks the safeguards built into traditional banking.
Wider worries on stablecoins and the CLARITY Act
The ICBA isn't alone. Other bankers have voiced unease about the CLARITY Act, a bill that would create a federal framework for stablecoin issuers. The concern is that a light-touch regime could let unbacked tokens or poorly reserved stablecoins circulate widely, putting the payment system at risk. The ICBA letter to the OCC also touched on stablecoins, though the full text wasn't immediately available.
What the OCC does next
The agency hasn't responded publicly to the ICBA's request. But the pushback comes as the OCC has been more willing under its current leadership to charter crypto companies, including a handful of custody-focused trust banks. The ICBA wants that door shut — or at least bolted. Whether the OCC bows to pressure or stands its ground will shape how many crypto exchanges can operate as national trust banks this year and beyond.
For now, the ICBA's petition is sitting on the regulator's desk. No deadline for a response has been set.
