Circle National Trust has obtained final approval from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) to establish a federally chartered trust bank, the company confirmed Friday. The approval is effective immediately, with no preliminary conditions or gradual rollout. Circle's stock surged approximately 10% on the news to $70.66 before settling at $64.90 in pre-market.
Co-founder and CEO Jeremy Allaire called the charter “a defining step in bringing blockchain technology and digital assets into the core of the US financial system.” He emphasized that federal oversight sets a new standard for transparency, governance, and scale, enabling major financial institutions to build on public blockchains with clarity and confidence.
The charter allows Circle National Trust to operate nationally under direct OCC supervision, eliminating the state-by-state money transmitter licensing regime that stablecoin issuers have navigated until now. The trust bank structure aligns with Circle's business: USDC has $73.2 billion in circulation, backed by reserves held in cash, short-duration US Treasuries, and highly liquid instruments. Trust banks can custody assets and issue reserve-backed instruments without taking deposits in the conventional sense.
Initially, Circle National Trust will provide custody services for the company and its affiliates, with plans to extend those services to select institutional customers, including other banks. The approval arrives as the Senate prepares to advance the CLARITY Act, a comprehensive stablecoin framework, with a merged committee text expected this week and potential floor action tentatively set for the week of July 20. The timing underscores a working proof of concept for the federal oversight model the bill envisions: mandatory reserves, transparent redemption rights, and direct supervisory accountability. Circle’s head start creates a structural first-mover advantage as regulation tightens.
For the broader stablecoin industry, the charter resolves a long-standing definitional grey zone. Issuers have processed trillions in annual transaction volume and held reserves rivaling mid-tier commercial banks without formal legal status as a bank. The OCC charter closes that gap for Circle, while the CLARITY Act would extend the resolved status industry-wide—with compliance requirements that smaller issuers may struggle to meet.
The development also has international dimensions. Circle holds a Digital Assets Business Act licence in Bermuda, where it has been involved in government initiatives for an on-chain economy. Bermuda has stalled on its own efforts to create a domestic digital bank following Jewel Bank’s launch several years ago.
For TradFi institutions, corporate treasuries, and institutional investors previously deterred by regulatory uncertainty, Circle’s OCC charter provides the compliance template many have been awaiting, potentially unlocking deeper engagement with digital assets.
