Coinbase’s national trust charter takes effect after OCC sign-off
Coinbase says the OCC gave its national trust company final approval, putting institutional crypto custody under federal oversight without creating a deposit-taking bank.
Crypto Daybook Newsroom2 min read
Coinbase says the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), the federal bank regulator, gave its national trust company final approval, putting its custody business under federal oversight. The OCC’s application record lists the charter as effective on Nov. 6, 2026. Coinbase announced the approval on Nov. 9.
The new entity, Coinbase National Trust Company, is a national trust bank. That is a limited-purpose charter for trust and related services, rather than a full-service bank account offering. CoinDesk’s report says the charter does not let Coinbase take customer deposits or make loans.
What services can the charter cover?
It lets Coinbase provide custody, meaning safekeeping assets for clients, under a federal regulatory framework. The OCC’s earlier review described a proposed business focused on digital asset custody, mainly for institutional clients, and related transactions involving assets held in custody.
The charter also creates a federal route for Coinbase’s custody business, which had operated through a New York state-chartered trust company. Coinbase says it will build on its work with New York’s Department of Financial Services. The federal charter does not mean Coinbase’s entire exchange is now a bank.
Does approval mean Coinbase can issue stablecoins?
No. The OCC’s April review said the trust company did not propose to issue stablecoins. It also said the company would not provide some related services itself, including staking and trading; instead, it could help custody clients access services offered by Coinbase affiliates.
The April approval was conditional and required Coinbase to meet pre-opening requirements. The OCC’s record now marks the charter as effective, and Coinbase says it has received final approval. The company said the move would expand its custody business under federal oversight.
For crypto clients, the change is chiefly about who supervises the custody provider and under what framework. The charter brings Coinbase’s trust activities into a national system overseen by the OCC, while leaving the new entity’s role narrower than that of a bank that takes deposits and lends.
References
- application record — apps.occ.gov
- CoinDesk’s report — coindesk.com