Coinbase receives OCC approval to form national trust company

Coinbase cleared for a national trust company

The US Office of the Comptroller of the Currency has approved Coinbase's application to create a federally regulated trust company called Coinbase National Trust Company, according to a report by Bits.media published on 9 November 2026. The OCC supervises national banks and federal savings associations in the United States.

The report described the approval as covering a limited bank licence rather than the full charter of a national bank. Bits.media did not say what conditions the regulator attached, what services the new entity will offer, or when it is expected to begin operating.

The report also did not cite an OCC notice of its own decision, and no comment from Coinbase or from the regulator was included in it.

What a trust charter is

A trust company charter generally lets a firm act as a fiduciary and hold assets in custody for clients. It does not normally allow deposit-taking and lending, which a full national bank charter does.

A federal charter places such an entity under OCC supervision rather than under state banking regulators. The report gave no detail on how Coinbase National Trust Company would be capitalised or governed.

What remains unconfirmed

The date of the approval, the terms attached to it and the scope of the licence are not set out in the report. Whether the OCC has published the decision itself is likewise not stated there.

Coinbase's plans for the trust company, and any timeline for launching it, remain open.