The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency has approved national trust charters for Coinbase, Ripple, Bitgo, and several other crypto firms, marking a significant step in the industry's push for federal recognition. The move has drawn immediate scrutiny from U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren, who pressed the OCC over the approvals and what she sees as insufficient guardrails around digital asset custody.
Warren's challenge
Senator Warren, a longtime critic of the crypto sector, escalated her oversight this week by calling on the OCC to explain its reasoning for clearing the charter applications. She questioned whether the agency had adequately assessed the risks tied to holding customer assets at firms that also engage in lending or other financial activities. The letter didn't name specific companies but targeted the batch of approvals that included Coinbase, Ripple, and Bitgo.
Belshe's defense
Bitgo CEO Mike Belshe fired back, arguing that the national trust charter's fiduciary custody model actually separates client property from any lending or proprietary trading risks. "Fiduciary custody separates client property from lending risks," Belshe said, countering the implication that the charter opens the door to conflicts. The exchange's stance is that the structure provides stronger protections than state-level trust licenses that many crypto custodians currently hold.
What's at stake
The push for national trust charters has turned into a broader regulatory clash over who gets to oversee digital asset custody — and how. State regulators have traditionally held the reins, but federal charters give firms a single rulebook and the ability to operate nationwide. Critics like Warren worry that the OCC is moving too fast without clear rules on asset segregation, while industry advocates say the charters bring much-needed consistency. The OCC hasn't publicly responded to Warren's letter, but the clock is ticking: the agency typically faces a 30-day window to reply to congressional inquiries. How it answers could set the tone for the next phase of crypto regulation in the U.S.
