NEW YORK--Crypto.com has received conditional approval from the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency to form a national trust bank, a move that would expand the exchange’s digital-asset custody services under federal oversight, according to CoinDesk.
The proposed Foris Dax National Trust Bank, which would operate as Crypto.com National Trust Bank, would be structured as a limited-purpose national trust bank. As CoinDesk reported, the entity would not take deposits or make loans but would instead provide custody, staking and trade-settlement services for digital assets, including assets on its Cronos blockchain.
Crypto.com already operates Crypto.com Custody Trust Co., a qualified custodian regulated by New Hampshire’s banking department. However, the OCC charter would consolidate its institutional offerings under a single federal framework — an important distinction for ETF issuers, asset managers and other institutional clients that often prefer nationally overseen custodians for compliance and operational efficiency, CoinDesk noted.
The application was filed in October, and while the approval remains conditional, it represents a key milestone. CoinDesk also reported that Bridge, the stablecoin firm acquired by Stripe, recently secured initial approval for its own national trust bank charter.
The developments place Crypto.com among a growing cohort of crypto firms seeking to operate within a federal regulatory structure. In December, BitGo, Circle, Ripple, Paxos and Fidelity Digital Assets received similar conditional approvals, according to CoinDesk.