Community Bankers Sue OCC Over 'Side Door' Crypto Charters
The Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA) has filed a federal lawsuit against the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), challenging the regulator's authority to grant national trust bank charters to cryptocurrency firms.
The lawsuit, which targets an OCC rule and accompanying legal interpretation, argues that the OCC exceeded its statutory authority under the National Bank Act by allowing crypto companies to secure federal trust charters without performing traditional fiduciary duties.
Community bankers claim the policy creates a regulatory loophole, as digital asset firms gain the prestige and operational reach of a federal banking license without meeting standard capital, liquidity, consolidated supervision, or Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) obligations.
The lawsuit seeks to vacate the OCC's final rule along with Interpretive Letter 1176, which replaced references strictly limiting national trust banks to 'fiduciary activities' with broader language allowing non-fiduciary operations typical of trust companies.