Key facts
- Circle, the issuer of the USDC stablecoin, has been approved by the U.S. OCC to form a national trust bank.
- This approval enables Circle to provide custody and fiduciary services.
- The newly approved entity will not accept consumer deposits.
- Circle is expanding its operations within the United States.
Circle, the entity behind the world's second-largest stablecoin, USDC, has secured approval from the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) to establish a national trust bank. This regulatory milestone permits Circle to offer custody and fiduciary services within the United States, although the bank will not be able to accept consumer deposits.
The approval signifies a significant expansion for Circle in the U.S. market, allowing it to provide regulated financial services related to digital assets. National trust banks in the U.S. are chartered to hold assets in a fiduciary capacity, a role crucial for institutional adoption of cryptocurrencies.