The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency granted final approval to Ripple National Trust Bank on October 26, 2026. The decision completes a process that began on December 12, 2025. On that date, the OCC issued conditional approval for the charter. Ripple National Trust Bank operates as a national trust bank, so it differs from a full-service commercial bank. Its approved activities center on three functions. The bank can manage the segregated reserves that back RLUSD, act as collateral trustee for RLUSD holders, and provide fiduciary digital asset custody. Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse framed the approval as proof of a long-held view. “For years, we’ve said crypto and banks work better together,” he said in the announcement.
Big news heading into @RippleSwell: the @USOCC has granted final approval for Ripple National Trust Bank. This gives Ripple a federally supervised platform to support $RLUSD and provide digital asset custody to enterprises. We’ve always said crypto and banks work better together — this is what that looks like. Real innovation, real accountability, federal oversight. The revolution isn’t happening outside the system. It’s happening from within it.
— Brad Garlinghouse (@bgarlinghouse) October 26, 2026
A Federal Layer on Top of RLUSD Oversight
RLUSD issuance does not move to the new bank. Standard Custody & Trust Company, a limited purpose trust company regulated by the New York Department of Financial Services, will continue to issue the stablecoin. However, Ripple National Trust Bank adds federal OCC supervision to the oversight that already covers RLUSD. Ripple launched the stablecoin in December 2024, and the company now reports a market cap of about $2.5 billion. Meanwhile, BNY serves as the primary reserve custodian. Ripple also publishes monthly independent attestations on circulating supply and reserve assets. The company describes the reserves as fully backed by U.S. dollar deposits, U.S. government securities, and other cash equivalents.
This structure matters because stablecoin rules now carry real legal weight in the United States. President Trump signed the GENIUS Act in July 2025 to set a federal framework for stablecoins. Ripple says it will work with the OCC, the state regulator, and other agencies as the U.S. implements that framework. As a result, the trust bank gives Ripple a federally supervised home for the most sensitive part of a stablecoin business, which is the reserve.
Fiduciary Custody for Enterprise Clients
The second function may matter more for Ripple’s institutional pitch. The charter authorizes fiduciary digital asset custody once the bank opens. A fiduciary custodian holds assets for clients under a legal duty of care. Those assets stay separate from the custodian’s own balance sheet. Consequently, banks, asset managers, and corporate treasuries often prefer custodians that regulators supervise directly.
Ripple already sells custody as one part of a wider enterprise offering. The company says it serves clients with payments, custody, prime brokerage, and treasury management. It also holds more than 85 licenses. In addition, RLUSD works as collateral within Ripple Prime and moves across Ripple’s payments infrastructure. A federally supervised custodian could therefore tie these products together under one regulatory umbrella. Ripple has not named any custody customers for the new bank.
Where Ripple Sits Among Crypto Trust Banks
Ripple joins a small group of crypto firms that have won national trust charters. The OCC announced conditional approvals in December 2025 for new charters at Ripple and Circle. On the same day, it conditionally approved BitGo, Paxos, and Fidelity Digital Assets to convert state trust charters into national ones. Circle moved first on final approval. The Block reported that the OCC cleared First National Digital Currency Bank, which will operate as Circle National Trust. At launch, that bank will provide custody for Circle and its affiliates, while USDC reserve management waits for a later phase.
Anchorage Digital had already held a national trust charter before this wave. Ripple’s approval, in contrast, ties the charter directly to a stablecoin reserve. That detail separates it from custody-only models. Notably, the pattern shows the OCC treating trust charters as the main path for crypto firms into federal supervision.
What Remains Unclear
Several practical questions remain open. Ripple has not published an opening date for the bank. The company also has not named its first custody clients. Additionally, the approval does not by itself give Ripple a Federal Reserve master account. Ripple’s announcement does not mention one, and OCC approval alone does not grant access to Federal Reserve payment systems.
RLUSD supply figures also vary by tracker. Ripple cites $2.5 billion, while other reports have put the September 2026 figure between $2.37 billion and $2.49 billion. Readers should check a live data source before relying on a precise number. Even so, the approval marks a clear step. Ripple now has a federal charter to match its state-level stablecoin oversight, and it can start building custody services on that foundation.
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