Crypto.com announced today that it has taken a major regulatory step forward after the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency granted conditional approval for the charter of Foris Dax National Trust Bank, which will do business as Crypto.com National Trust Bank. The move, the company said, clears a significant hurdle on its path to offering federally regulated custodial services, including custody, staking across blockchains, and trade settlement, under the oversight of a U.S. federal regulator.
The conditional OK from the OCC will, once finalized, allow Crypto.com to operate a nationally chartered trust bank. The company framed the milestone as a step toward becoming a one-stop qualified custodian for institutional clients that demand federal oversight and the compliance guardrails that accompany it. Crypto.com has made regulatory credentials a central part of its pitch, and the charter application, submitted in October 2025, was part of a broader effort to expand its custody and settlement offerings while reinforcing trust with large financial institutions.
“This conditional approval is the latest testament to both our commitment to compliance and to providing customers trusted and secure services they expect from Crypto.com,” said Kris Marszalek, Co-Founder and CEO of Crypto.com. “This milestone brings us a major step closer to meeting leading institutions’ needs for a one-stop-shop qualified custodian under a gold standard of federal oversight.”
Crypto.com Advances U.S. Expansion
Crypto.com emphasized that the conditional approval does not affect the operations of its existing custody arm. Crypto.com Custody Trust Company will continue to function as a Qualified Custodian regulated by the New Hampshire Banking Department and will maintain ongoing client services during the chartering process. That separation, the company suggested, is designed to ensure continuity for clients while the national charter works its way to full approval.
The charter is intended to support a suite of custody services, from secure storage of digital assets to staking services that interact with a variety of blockchains and protocols. Crypto.com specifically noted staking across multiple blockchains, including Cronos, as an example of the capabilities the bank hopes to offer under federal oversight. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency’s conditional approval signals regulators’ readiness to engage with more traditional banking structures for digital-asset activities, though conditional approvals typically require the applicant to satisfy additional requirements before a full, unconditional charter is issued.
Founded in 2016, Crypto.com has steadily evolved into one of the most recognizable names in crypto. It has been serving millions of users worldwide with a broad lineup of products that span everything from everyday retail trading to institutional-grade custody services. The firm reiterated its long-stated vision, “Cryptocurrency in Every Wallet™,” and positioned the charter as part of an ongoing strategy to accelerate crypto adoption through regulated, compliant services.
Industry observers will be watching closely as Crypto.com and the OCC work through the remaining steps. The company’s pitch to institutions is straightforward: a federally chartered national trust bank can offer custody and settlement services under the legal and supervisory framework familiar to traditional banks, potentially lowering regulatory friction for institutions that have been cautious about holding or staking digital assets.
For customers and counterparties, the key questions will be how quickly the OCC’s conditions are satisfied and what practical changes the national charter will bring to daily operations, custody guarantees, and recourse in the event of disputes. Crypto.com’s assurance that its New Hampshire–regulated custody arm remains operational aims to provide stability during that interim period.
The digital-asset sector keeps edging closer to traditional finance, and developments like this highlight a clear shift in strategy. Rather than operating on the fringes, crypto firms are actively seeking established regulatory frameworks to win over institutional investors and slot more seamlessly into the existing financial system. Crypto.com’s conditional approval stands out as one of the more visible signs of that transition already underway.
