President Donald Trump signed an executive order yesterday directing federal financial regulators to streamline rules for fintech companies, and asking the Federal Reserve to reconsider letting crypto firms and other non-bank players plug directly into the payment system. The order, dated May 19, sets a series of deadlines over the next six months — and revives a battle over master account access that Custodia Bank lost in court three years ago.
What the order asks
Six regulators — the SEC, CFTC, CFPB, FDIC, OCC, and NCUA — have 180 days to review their rules and identify changes that could make life easier for fintech firms. The White House wants a progress report by mid-November. Separately, the Federal Reserve Board gets 120 days to study whether uninsured depositories and non-bank firms, including crypto companies, should be allowed to access Reserve Bank payment services. The order also asks whether individual Reserve Banks can make that call on their own — a question that's been contentious since the Custodia fight.
A boost for Custodia and others
Custodia Bank founder Caitlin Long welcomed the directive. Custodia sued the Fed after being denied a master account in 2023 and lost. The new order explicitly asks for transparent application procedures and a 90-day decision deadline on complete applications. For firms that have been stuck in limbo for years, that's a concrete change.
Kraken's lead, Ripple's wait
Kraken became the first crypto firm to get direct Federal Reserve access earlier this year. Ripple and others are still in the application pipeline. The order doesn't guarantee approval for anyone — it asks the Fed to set clearer rules and actually decide things within 90 days. That alone would be a shift from the current system, where applications can sit unanswered for months or longer.
Next steps: 120-day Fed review
The Fed's parallel review is due within 120 days — so around mid-September. The six financial regulators have until November. If the Fed's board decides that individual Reserve Banks can act independently on master account applications, the backlog could start moving faster. If not, Congress or the courts may end up back in the picture.
