OCC’s Gould: Digital asset entities should have pathway to charters 

Comptroller of the Currency Jonathan Gould said entities that engage in activities involving digital assets and other novel technologies should have a pathway to become federally supervised banks if they meet OCC chartering requirements. 

Details: Speaking at the Blockchain Association Policy Summit, Gould said chartering new banking institutions is one of the OCC’s core functions and new charters ensure a diverse banking sector and bring new products and services to consumers.  

ICBA Advocacy: ICBA has strongly opposed the influx of national trust bank charter applications from nonbank fintechs. 

ICBA View: In a series of recent letters, most recently on applications from Sony Bank and Coinbase, ICBA said: 

• These applications are designed to provide nonbank fintechs the benefits of a U.S. bank charter without satisfying the full scope of U.S. bank regulations. 

• The OCC lacks statutory authority to expand trust powers under Interpretive Letter #1176. 

Background: A recent Independent Banker article and previous ICBA blog post break down the influx of applications from nonbank fintech firms for national bank trust charters and the risks they pose to the financial system.