Rain Applies for US Trust Bank Charter Amid Regulatory Debate

Rain, a stablecoin payments infrastructure provider, has applied for a national trust bank charter with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC). The proposed Rain National Trust Bank, headquartered in New York, aims to offer fiduciary custody of digital assets and US dollars for institutional clients, reserve management for stablecoin issuers, and issue and redeem dollar-backed stablecoins under the GENIUS Act. Brandon Soto, former Square Financial Services CFO, will lead the bank if approved.

Rain’s move follows a trend of crypto companies seeking bank charters, with payments infrastructure company Modern Treasury also filing an application on the same day. Farooq Malik, CEO of Rain, emphasized the need for a federally regulated fiduciary to hold assets behind stablecoin programs.

The push for crypto trust bank charters has faced opposition from community banks. The Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA) sued the OCC, arguing that the regulator exceeded its authority by allowing non-depository trust banks to engage in high-risk crypto activities under lightly regulated charters. The lawsuit seeks to overturn the OCC’s 2026 chartering rule and 2021 interpretive letter, alleging they give crypto trust banks an unfair competitive advantage.

ICBA claims the OCC has approved or conditionally approved 21 trust banks, with 13 being crypto companies. The Crypto Council for Innovation countered that the lawsuit aims to stifle innovation, highlighting the ongoing debate over regulatory frameworks for crypto-related financial services.