Coinbase (NASDAQ:COIN) received final approval from the OCC to charter Coinbase National Trust Company, joining Circle (NYSE:CRCL) and Ripple (CRYPTO: XRP) in securing a federal trust charter for custody operations.
Coinbase Wins Final OCC Approval for Federal Crypto Custody
The OCC approved Coinbase’s application last Friday, the company announced, letting it bring custody operations under a single federal regulatory framework rather than relying solely on state-level licenses.
Coinbase has safeguarded digital assets for more than 14 years and calls itself the leading crypto custodian globally, working with many of the world’s largest financial firms.
The approval builds on Coinbase’s earlier work with New York’s Department of Financial Services, which began in 2017 with a BitLicense for Coinbase Inc. and continued with a 2018 limited-purpose trust charter for Coinbase Custody Trust Company.
"This is an important next chapter for Coinbase and for the trusted custody services we have built for more than a decade," the company wrote in its announcement.
This final approval follows Coinbase’s conditional OCC clearance in April, when CEO Brian Armstrong stressed the company was "not becoming a bank."
How Coinbase Fits Into a Broader Wave of Crypto Bank Charters
Circle received its own final OCC approval in July, following BitGo’s full approval in December 2025, Benzinga previously reported.
Ripple secured final approval in October, covering RLUSD (CRYPTO: RLUSD) reserve management and fiduciary digital-asset custody.
Those developments trace back to Anchorage Digital’s pioneering federal charter in 2021, the first of its kind in the industry.
The broader approval wave also included Paxos and Fidelity Digital Assets, both granted conditional clearance alongside Circle, Ripple and BitGo in December 2025.
Moreover, Stripe-owned Bridge received conditional approval in February covering planned stablecoin issuance, reserve management and custody services.
Trump-linked World Liberty Financial (CRYPTO: WLFI) also followed in August, winning conditional approval to establish World Liberty Trust Co. Each of those conditional approvals still requires additional regulatory steps before taking full effect.
Where COIN Stands Technically
Coinbase shares remain below all four major EMAs while the Parabolic SAR sits above price, reinforcing the stock’s bearish trend.
Key levels for COIN:
- $140: first level bulls need to reclaim to signal recovery
- $153 to $158: stronger resistance zone, where the SAR and 20-day EMA converge
Image: Shutterstock
© 2026 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
