America

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Bank

A trade organization representing community banks in the US has filed a lawsuit against the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), claiming the regulator overstepped its jurisdiction when it provided national trust bank charters to cryptocurrency companies.
The Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA) initiated the case in the District of Columbia against a recent action by OCC and its related guidance. They argue that crypto companies receive the credibility of a bank charter in the US without complying with all the regular bank requirements.
<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="strong-a-lawsuit-aimed-at-the-occ-s-chartering-authority-strong">A lawsuit aimed at the OCC’s chartering authority</h3>
Under national trust charters, companies are permitted to manage customer funds and process transactions. However, they cannot take cash deposits or give loans. ICBA has pointed out that extending these charters to crypto companies takes the OCC’s mandate too far, as per the <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/community-banks-sue-us-regulator-over-crypto-firm-charters-2026-10-02/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">report by Reuters</a>.
<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
 “American consumers reasonably expect a federally chartered bank to carry federal protections.” — ICBA President and CEO Rebeca Romero Rainey, in an <a href="https://www.icba.org/w/occ-release-oct-2026?utm_source=chatgpt.com" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">ICBA statement</a> on the lawsuit against the OCC
</blockquote>
ICBA President and CEO Rebecca Romero Rainey said digital assets held by crypto firms under national trust charters do not come with the same protections. An OCC spokesperson declined to comment to Reuters.
<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="strong-warren-and-community-banks-were-already-pushing-back-strong">Warren and community banks were already pushing back</h3>
The dispute has been building for months. In May, ICBA opposed the <a href="https://www.icba.org/w/icba-raises-concerns-over-kraken-pursuit-of-national-trust-charter" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">charter application of Payward</a>, Kraken’s parent company. <a href="https://www.occ.treas.gov/topics/charters-and-licensing/digital-assets-licensing-applications/index-digital-assets-licensing-applications.html" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">OCC’s records</a> indicate that application for Payward National Trust Company’s was submitted on May 8.
Senator Elizabeth Warren had raised these concerns before. She issued a <a href="https://www.banking.senate.gov/newsroom/minority/warren-presses-occ-on-approval-of-special-charters-for-crypto-companies-seeking-to-act-like-banks-while-evading-bank-rules" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">letter in May</a> stating that since December 2025 the OCC had granted at least nine national trust charters to crypto firms and questioning if some of their activities can be classified under the activities allowed for a trust company.
<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
 “These companies are effectively crypto banks that want to evade the fundamental safeguards and obligations that come with being a bank.” — Senator Elizabeth Warren, in a <a href="https://www.banking.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/letter_to_occ_re_national_trust_bank_charters.pdf?utm_source=chatgpt.com" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">May 18 letter</a> to Comptroller Jonathan Gould
</blockquote>
<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="strong-the-occ-says-it-only-clarified-existing-powers-strong">The OCC says it only clarified existing powers</h3>
The OCC views the matter in a different light. Its <a href="https://www.occ.treas.gov/news-issuances/bulletins/2026/bulletin-2026-4.html" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">final chartering rules</a>, which took effect on April 1, states that it “would neither expand nor contract” the chartering authority of the agency. Instead, it explains that trust-limited national banks may perform a range of non-traditional functions related to the activities of trust companies.
The statistics shed light on the reasons behind the fierce debate surrounding the matter. Comptroller Jonathan Gould has come out with a statement that the OCC has got <a href="https://www.cryptopolitan.com/bastion-wins-conditional-occ-approval-for-a-national-trust-bank-charter" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">40 applications</a> for new bank charters in roughly 18 months and that 23 of these are for digital assets. This is eight times as much as in the preceding four years, according to earlier materials from Cryptopolitan.
<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img width="1024" height="576" src="https://www.cryptopolitan.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/OCC-Charter-Applications-Infographic-1024x576.png" alt="">
 <figcaption> OCC charter applications: 40 total, 23 tied to digital assets
 </figcaption>
</figure>
<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="strong-why-the-charter-fight-reaches-the-global-crypto-market-strong">Why the charter fight reaches the global crypto market</h3>
The situation has implications that reach beyond US banking. A study by the Bank for International Settlements indicates that the <a href="https://www.bis.org/publications/paper-170-impact-stablecoins-international-monetary-and-financial-system.pdf" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">volume of stablecoins</a> on the market could exceed the $300 billion mark by 2026, marking a staggering 98% of the total as linked to the US dollar.
Simultaneously, according to the Financial Stability Board, different jurisdictions have major gaps in the way they implement regulations, allowing for <a href="https://www.fsb.org/2025/10/thematic-review-on-fsb-global-regulatory-framework-for-crypto-asset-activities" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">regulatory arbitrage</a> to happen. The OCC lawsuit can help define the extent of the applicability of the US trust companies charter in the crypto area and indicate the weight of the federal charter in the global market.
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Community banks sue OCC over crypto firms' national trust charters

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