Circle Internet Group, the issuer of the USDC stablecoin, has formally applied for a national trust bank charter from the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC). The announcement was made via a press release on June 30.
If approved, the new entity—First National Digital Currency Bank, N.A.—would be authorized to manage the reserves backing USDC and offer digital asset custody services to institutional clients under federal regulation. This move would position Circle alongside Anchorage Digital as one of the few crypto-native companies operating as a federally regulated trust institution.
Unlike traditional banks, the new trust entity will not accept deposits or issue loans. However, the charter would allow Circle to hold and manage crypto assets and tokenized financial instruments on behalf of clients, expanding its service offerings beyond stablecoins.
The application marks a major step in Circle’s effort to fully integrate USDC into the regulated U.S. financial system. It coincides with growing legislative momentum for stablecoin regulation, notably the GENIUS Act—a federal bill that requires stablecoin issuers to maintain full backing with liquid assets and provide transparent monthly reserve disclosures. The bill recently passed the Senate and is now awaiting House approval, with President Trump expected to sign it into law.
Currently, Circle’s USDC reserves—comprising short-term U.S. Treasuries, repurchase agreements, and cash—are held by custodians like BNY Mellon and managed by BlackRock. With the proposed trust bank, Circle aims to take a more direct role in reserve management, although some assets will continue to be managed externally.
In addition to managing USDC, the trust charter would allow Circle to custody tokenized versions of traditional financial assets such as stocks and bonds, broadening its institutional service offerings beyond volatile cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum.
Circle has consistently been at the forefront of regulatory compliance. It was the first company to receive a BitLicense from the New York Department of Financial Services (NYDFS) in 2015 and the first global stablecoin issuer to meet the EU’s Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) requirements in 2024. Earlier this year, it also received preliminary approval to operate in Abu Dhabi’s financial free zone.
