Regulatory Whiplash Hampers US Banks' Bitcoin Activities
A new Congressional Research Service report has shed light on the uncertain regulatory landscape for US banks dealing in Bitcoin and other digital assets. The report, titled 'Crypto and Bank-Permissible Activities' (IF13324), concludes that permission for crypto activities can shift with agency leadership and presidential administrations.
The three main federal bank regulators - the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), the Federal Reserve, and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) - have repeatedly reversed their policies as the political environment changed. The report traces this pattern back to at least 2017, when the Trump administration brought pro-crypto policies.
The Biden administration tightened regulations from 2021 to 2024, but then the pendulum swung back in March 2025 with the OCC's Interpretive Letter 1183, which eased some restrictions on bank digital asset activities. The report considers these shifts reversible because they came through agency action rather than new law.