Circle Gains OCC Approval to Operate as Trust Bank, Shares Rise 5%

Stablecoin issuer Circle saw its shares rise after the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) granted the company approval to operate as a trust bank, the firm announced Friday.

Shares ended the trading day up nearly 5%, though off their earlier highs.

Key Details of the Approval

• The new entity will operate under the name Circle National Trust.
• Circle can now directly manage reserves for its regulated stablecoins, primarily USDC, which has over $73 billion in circulation.
• Previously, Circle relied on third-party banks and custodians to hold the cash and Treasury assets backing USDC.
• The charter does not permit Circle to operate as a commercial bank that accepts deposits or issues loans.

Broader Industry Context

The approval reflects a wider trend in the crypto industry, as companies shift from being financial applications to becoming financial infrastructure. Recent OCC actions have included approvals or applications from:

• Coinbase
• BitGo
• Fidelity Digital Assets
• Ripple
• Paxos

This signals a race among major players to control more of the regulated financial stack.

Regulatory and Strategic Implications

Dante Disparte, Circle's chief strategy officer, told CNBC that the trust structure can simplify regulatory requirements for international counterparties.

"We think of ourselves as a pioneer in ensuring that — even from the very earliest days of stablecoins entering the stream of commerce — they ought to follow the norms for trust, transparency, safety, financial crime compliance and the rest. Today's announcement codifies that at the federal level."

The charter also gives Circle a national bank regulator, replacing the patchwork of state-based regulations that often slow growth and increase costs for startups in the financial services sector.

Competitive Landscape

The stablecoin race has intensified since the passage of the GENIUS Act nearly a year ago, which established a federal framework for payment stablecoins. Under that law, large stablecoin issuers like Circle are required to obtain an OCC charter.

Traditional financial firms are increasingly looking to issue their own stablecoins, presenting a growing competitive challenge for USDC. These firms aim to capture payment flows, deepen customer relationships, and build services on programmable digital dollars rather than relying on third-party issuers.

Related Developments

• On the same day, global financial messaging network Swift launched a blockchain consortium with 17 banks, including Citi and HSBC, in a push for 24/7 payments to compete in the stablecoin space.
• In June, a consortium of over 140 companies — including BlackRock, Coinbase, Mastercard, Stripe, and Visa — joined the new Open USD (OUSD) stablecoin effort, where reserve yields are distributed to participating partners rather than a single issuer.

The OCC did not respond to CNBC's request for comment.