Coinbase has received final approval from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) to charter Coinbase National Trust Company (CNTC), marking a significant regulatory milestone for the cryptocurrency custody sector. The approval, granted Friday, establishes a federally regulated framework for the company’s institutional-grade digital asset custody operations.
- Regulatory Authority: Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC)
- Company History: Over 14 years of digital asset custody operations
- Prior State Charter: New York limited purpose trust charter approved in 2018
- Initial License: Coinbase Inc. bitlicense granted in 2017
Coinbase currently serves as the leading global cryptocurrency custodian, managing digital assets for many of the world’s largest financial services firms. The OCC charter consolidates the company’s custody capabilities under a single federal regulatory framework, moving institutional digital asset custody closer to alignment with traditional financial infrastructure standards.
The approval builds on Coinbase‘s existing regulatory relationships, particularly its work with the New York Department of Financial Services (NYDFS) since 2017. The company emphasized that constructive regulatory engagement has been central to establishing security, compliance, and customer protection standards across its custody offerings as cryptocurrencies become increasingly embedded in the broader financial system.
The charter represents a step toward federal uniformity in digital asset regulation and follows years of compliance development. Coinbase operates Coinbase Prime, its institutional custody service designed for large-scale cryptocurrency holdings.
