Coinbase National Trust Company has officially completed its chartering process with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), granting the cryptocurrency exchange a full national trust bank charter. According to regulatory records, the approval places Coinbase’s institutional custody business under direct federal supervision following a process that began in October 2025.
The federal authorization enables Coinbase to provide fiduciary digital asset custody services, primarily targeting institutional clients. The company plans to transition its existing custody operations, currently regulated by the New York State Department of Financial Services, to the new OCC-supervised entity over the next three years.
Despite achieving federal trust bank status, the approval comes with strict operational boundaries. The charter excludes traditional commercial banking activities, meaning Coinbase cannot accept ordinary retail deposits, engage in traditional lending, or directly issue stablecoins. While the trust bank can facilitate client access to prime trading, financing, and staking, those underlying products must be provided by separate Coinbase affiliates rather than the bank itself. Additionally, the charter does not automatically grant direct access to Federal Reserve payment systems.
As part of the operational conditions set by the OCC, the trust bank is required to maintain a minimum of $60 million in Tier 1 capital. It must also hold sufficient eligible liquid assets to cover at least 180 days of operating expenses during its initial three years.
The move puts Coinbase alongside Ripple, which secured similar OCC national trust bank approval in October. However, the regulatory policy continues to face pushback from traditional banking groups. The Independent Community Bankers of America filed a lawsuit in federal court in October 2026, challenging the OCC’s authority to grant national trust charters to digital asset companies without imposing the full obligations required of insured commercial banks.
