OCC Grants Conditional Approval to OpenReserve Bank

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) has granted conditional approval to OpenReserve Bank, National Association, a proposed full-service national bank in Salt Lake City, Utah. This decision marks a significant milestone for OpenReserve as it prepares to offer deposits, lending, payments, treasury services, and digital-asset products.

The OCC's approval is conditional, meaning that OpenReserve must complete several requirements before it can begin operating. These include obtaining federal deposit insurance from the FDIC, applying for stock in a Federal Reserve Bank, completing preopening work, and undergoing a preopening examination. The bank must also raise at least $210 million in initial paid-in capital and achieve a Tier 1 leverage ratio of at least 12% during its first three years of operation.

OpenReserve plans to use blockchain-based systems as part of its underlying infrastructure, offering customers tokenized deposits, digital vaults, and asset-backed financing. The proposed bank will have a separate subsidiary for issuing, holding, converting, and processing payments involving U.S. dollar-denominated reserve-backed stablecoins.