EDX Markets, an institutional cryptocurrency exchange backed by major traditional finance firms, has filed an application with the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) to establish a national trust bank. The proposed entity, EDX Trust, would operate as a non-depository national bank, providing crypto custody, asset management, and trade-settlement services specifically for institutional clients.
The company stated that its model is designed to address structural risks prevalent in crypto markets, where trading, custody, and brokerage functions are often combined within a single platform, creating potential conflicts of interest and single points of failure. EDX aims to separate custody and settlement from trading, while continuing to route order matching through its existing exchange platform.
According to the filing, the trust bank would offer fiduciary asset management services, invest client cash and stablecoin balances in highly liquid assets, and facilitate trading through a riskless principal model with end-of-day net settlement. It would operate online from Chicago and target institutional clients such as broker-dealers, futures commission merchants, and registered investment advisers.
EDX CEO Tony Acuña-Rohter told Bloomberg, "It is without a doubt that the next wave of crypto will be the large banks. And in order for us to be able to service these firms, we think it gives us a competitive advantage to be an OCC-chartered trust." The company believes moving these functions into a federally chartered entity will allow it to offer services nationwide under a single regulatory framework and meet the custody requirements of regulated institutions.
This application is part of a broader trend of crypto and financial firms seeking national trust bank charters. Other recent applicants include Coinbase (which applied in October and is awaiting a decision), Zerohash, Laser Digital, Payoneer, and traditional institutions like Morgan Stanley. The OCC has continued approving applicants, issuing conditional licenses last month to Bridge, Stripe, and Crypto.com, following approvals in December for Ripple Labs, Circle Internet Group, Fidelity Digital Assets, Paxos, and BitGo.
Founded in 2022 and launched in 2023, EDX Markets is backed by a consortium of traditional market participants including Citadel Securities, Virtu Financial, Fidelity Digital Assets, Charles Schwab, Hudson River Trading, Paradigm, and Sequoia Capital.
