Circle wins OCC approval for US trust bank
Stablecoin issuer Circle has secured a national trust bank charter from US regulators, a move that allows it to directly custody its own reserves and signals a deeper integration of digital assets into traditional finance.
Circle has received final approval from the US Office of the Comptroller of the Currency to establish a national trust bank. The announcement sent the stablecoin issuer's shares surging 10 per cent in premarket trading on Friday.
The federal charter authorizes Circle to act as the direct custodian for its own reserves. It also permits the company to hold crypto assets on behalf of institutional clients, placing the newly formed Circle National Trust under the direct federal oversight of the OCC, the primary US regulator for national lenders and trust banks.
For a stablecoin issuer, holding one's own reserves is a critical operational and risk-management function. Circle issues USDC, a cryptocurrency designed to maintain a fixed 1:1 peg to the US dollar. The token is widely used to transfer funds between crypto assets and currently holds a market value of about $73.2 billion, according to CoinGecko data.
Bringing this reserve management in-house under a federal charter addresses a longstanding structural concern for institutional investors. Direct oversight by a primary federal banking regulator typically requires stringent capital and compliance standards, which may reduce counterparty risks associated with relying on third-party custodians.
The regulatory green light underscores a broader convergence between the digital asset sector and traditional finance. Over the past year, crypto firms have aggressively expanded into established financial services, pursuing banking licenses, custody operations and payment networks as regulatory hurdles have gradually eased.
Despite Friday's sharp premarket rally, Circle's equity has struggled against broader market pressures this year. Through last close, the company's stock had declined 20.5 per cent in 2025. LSEG data indicates Circle holds a market capitalization of approximately $15.7 billion. Securing direct control over its reserve infrastructure could prove pivotal in reversing that negative momentum as the firm transitions from a crypto-native operator to a federally supervised financial institution.
