Laser Digital, the digital assets division of Japanese financial giant Nomura, has officially applied for a U.S. national trust bank charter with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC). This strategic move, first reported by the Financial Times and confirmed by sources, positions the firm to operate across the United States under direct federal supervision, bypassing the need for state-by-state licensing.
The application is part of a broader trend where cryptocurrency and fintech firms are increasingly seeking to bring their core infrastructure onshore and align with federal banking regulators. A national trust charter would allow Laser Digital to offer custody and related services nationwide. While the charter does not permit taking retail deposits, it opens the door for the firm to also offer spot cryptocurrency trading once approved, consolidating trading, custody, and settlement activities under a single regulated entity.
The trust bank model has gained significant traction, particularly among stablecoin issuers and custody providers. Unlike traditional full-service banks, national trust banks focus on fiduciary and custodial functions, allowing crypto firms to operate with clearer regulatory oversight while avoiding some of the stringent balance-sheet and capital requirements faced by conventional banks. The OCC typically grants conditional approvals, after which applicants must meet specific requirements related to capital, governance, risk controls, and compliance before receiving a final charter and commencing operations.
Laser Digital is not alone in this pursuit. The application comes amid a surge of interest from other crypto-native firms. Earlier this month, Trump-backed World Liberty Financial announced it was pursuing a similar charter to support its USD1 stablecoin. Furthermore, several established players have already received conditional approval from the OCC, including Circle, Ripple, BitGo, Fidelity Digital Assets, and Paxos. This collective shift indicates a strategic move away from fragmented state licensing or offshore setups toward direct alignment with U.S. federal banking supervision.
Analysts view this trend as a significant indicator of a changing regulatory climate in Washington. While enforcement actions continue, there appears to be a more permissive and structured path for crypto firms seeking regulatory approval. For firms like Laser Digital, a federal charter offers a streamlined way to scale U.S. operations and reduce regulatory complexity. For policymakers, it brings major segments of the crypto infrastructure closer to the established oversight of the banking system.
