US Treasury Department has authorized banks to provide crypto services without prior approval

Custodial services and transactions with stablecoins are in question, among other things

10.03.2025 - 09:10

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What’s new? The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) within the US Department of the Treasury has announced that private financial institutions under the supervision of federal regulators can engage in various types of cryptocurrency activities without needing prior approval.

OCC statement

What else is known? The explanatory letter reports that national banks and federal savings associations can legally provide custodial services, conduct stablecoin transactions, and run blockchain nodes.

“The OCC expects banks to have the same strong risk management controls in place to support novel bank activities as they do for traditional ones,” said Acting Comptroller of the Currency Rodney Hood.

In a new filing, the OCC also withdrew its 2023 statement on liquidity risks to banks due to cryptocurrency, signaling a change in the regulator’s assessment of the industry’s impact on financial stability.

Earlier this month, Donald Trump signed an executive order creating a strategic bitcoin reserve and altcoin stockpile that will initially be formed from federally owned coins seized in criminal and civil proceedings.

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