Modern Treasury applies for national trust bank charter for digital asset custody

On October 5, 2026, payments infrastructure company Modern Treasury applied to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency to establish a federally regulated, limited-purpose national trust bank. The proposed entity, Modern Treasury National Trust Bank, would custody stablecoins and fiat currencies on a single platform. The bank would operate separately from Modern Treasury's existing payments business and would be prohibited from lending, taking deposits, or issuing stablecoins.

Proposed operations of Modern Treasury National trust bank

• ▪The proposed Modern Treasury National Trust Bank would be prohibited from taking deposits, making loans, issuing stablecoins, or offering FDIC insurance
• ▪Modern Treasury filed an application with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency on October 5, 2026, to establish a federally chartered, limited-purpose national trust bank named Modern Treasury National Trust Bank
• ▪Modern Treasury cannot begin operating its proposed trust bank until the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency completes its review and grants the required regulatory approvals
• ▪The proposed Modern Treasury National Trust Bank would provide custody of digital assets, including stablecoins, alongside related fiat services, allowing customers to manage both traditional and digital currencies on a single platform

Modern Treasury's stablecoin integration and business strategy

• ▪Modern Treasury plans to operate the proposed Modern Treasury National Trust Bank as a separate regulated entity from its existing payment service provider business, which has facilitated over $600 billion in payments
• ▪Modern Treasury integrated stablecoin capabilities into its payments platform following its acquisition of the company Beam in October 2025
• ▪Modern Treasury CEO Matt Marcus characterized stablecoins as foundational economic infrastructure for the future and framed Modern Treasury's national trust bank charter application as an extension of its stablecoin integration through the Beam acquisition

Industry adoption of OCC national trust charters

• ▪Multiple financial technology and cryptocurrency firms, including Circle, Paxos, Ripple, Bastion, BitGo, Payward, Zerohash, and Block, have pursued national trust charters from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency
• ▪National trust bank charters issued by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency permit firms to perform fiduciary and custody functions under federal supervision
• ▪Among the firms seeking Office of the Comptroller of the Currency charters, BitGo and Circle have received final approvals, while Bastion and Ripple have received conditional approvals

Debatable claims

• ▪The OCC should grant national trust bank charters to digital asset firms
• ▪Stablecoins represent a foundational economic infrastructure for the future
• ▪Limited-purpose national trust banks pose minimal risk to the financial system