Circle Internet Group, Inc. (NYSE: CRCL) has received approval from the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) to establish First National Digital Currency Bank, N.A., a national trust bank. The bank will operate under the name Circle National Trust.
The charter places Circle National Trust under direct federal oversight by the OCC, the primary regulator for national banks and national trust banks, and provides federally regulated custody for USDC, with reserve management planned as a future capability.
Upon opening, Circle National Trust will offer fiduciary digital asset custody services for Circle and its affiliates. Under its OCC-approved business plan, “depending on demand, FNDCB may eventually offer its digital asset custody service to a limited number of institutional customers directly, focusing on banks and other financial institutions, such as regulated derivatives organizations.” The charter is also designed to enable future capabilities, including management of the USDC Reserve, which would bring those operations under federal regulatory oversight.
“OCC approval to establish Circle National Trust marks a defining step in bringing blockchain technology and digital assets into the core of the U.S. financial system,” said Jeremy Allaire, Co-Founder, Chairman, and CEO of Circle. “Federal oversight of our trust bank sets a new standard for transparency, governance, and scale for Circle’s infrastructure and unlocks a new phase of adoption, where leading financial institutions can build on public blockchains with clarity and confidence.”
Circle submitted its application to the OCC on June 30, 2025 and received conditional approval in December 2025. In 2015, Circle became the first company to receive a BitLicense from the New York Department of Financial Services. In 2024, it became the first global stablecoin issuer to comply with the European Union’s Markets in Crypto-Assets framework. Circle also holds licenses in the UK, Singapore, and Bermuda, has met Canadian Value-Referenced Crypto Asset requirements, and in 2025 secured a license from Abu Dhabi Global Market’s Financial Services Regulatory Authority.