Coinbase's US national trust bank charter takes effect

Coinbase's national trust bank charter has taken effect, according to the US Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC). Cointelegraph reported on Nov. 9, 2026 that the charter became effective on Friday. Other outlets report that Coinbase announced the final approval on Monday and that OCC records show an effective date of Nov. 6. The OCC had given conditional approval on April 2.

The charter creates Coinbase National Trust Company. It brings Coinbase's institutional crypto custody business under direct federal supervision. Coinbase has offered custody since 2018. That business has run through Coinbase Custody Trust Company, which holds a limited-purpose trust charter from the New York Department of Financial Services. Under the federal charter, the new entity can act as a fiduciary for clients that hold digital assets. CoinMarketCap reports that it can offer custody nationwide without separate state money-transmitter licenses.

The charter is built for institutions, not retail banking. Coinbase has said it is not becoming a commercial bank. It also says it will not take retail deposits or engage in fractional-reserve banking. Bankless reports that Coinbase plans to move all of its New York trust company's custody business into the federal bank over three years. It also reports that the OCC's April letter says the bank does not propose to issue stablecoins. Any major change to the bank's business plan would need 60 days' notice and OCC sign-off.

According to Coinbase's charter application, as described by Cointelegraph, the company plans to offer institutional clients segregated custody accounts. Those clients would get access to staking, financing and trading through other Coinbase entities. The application also describes plans to explore digital asset payment products. It mentions custody services that would let clients interact with select smart contracts. Coinbase has not said when services will launch through the national trust company or which products will come first.

Coinbase is not the first crypto firm to get this type of approval. Reports name Ripple, Circle, BitGo, Fidelity Digital Assets and Paxos as firms that have received final national trust bank charters. Cointelegraph adds that Crypto.com and Stripe-owned Bridge have received conditional approval. It says Kraken and EDX Markets are still pursuing charters.

The approval comes amid legal opposition. CoinMarketCap notes that the charter took effect while banks are suing the OCC. The banks argue that the agency lacks the statutory authority to grant national trust charters to firms that neither take deposits nor act as traditional fiduciaries. The outcome of that litigation could matter for how widely such charters are used, but the available reporting does not say how the case will be resolved.

For the crypto industry, the development is a step in a wider trend. Firms that once relied on a patchwork of state licenses are seeking federal charters for custody and related services. A federal framework can change how a firm is supervised and what it can offer institutional clients. It does not by itself determine how the business will perform or how markets will react. This article is for information only and is not financial, investment or tax advice.

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