The Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA) has filed a lawsuit in federal court in Washington, D.C., against the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) and Comptroller Jonathan Gould in his official capacity. The October 2 complaint alleges that the OCC lacks the legal authority to charter non-fiduciary crypto firms as national trust banks.
The ICBA is asking the court to strike down a 2026 rule, 2021 guidance, and specific charter approvals that enabled the OCC's crypto-related actions. The lawsuit targets the March 2026 final rule, Interpretive Letter 1176 from January 2021, and Protego’s conditional approval granted in February 2026. According to the filing, Gould authored the 2021 letter while serving as the OCC’s senior deputy comptroller and chief counsel.
In the legal filing, the ICBA argues that the OCC misread a 1978 amendment to the National Bank Act by concluding that it permits the chartering of trust banks that neither take deposits nor act as fiduciaries. The group also invokes the major questions doctrine, asserting that such broad regulatory power requires explicit approval from Congress, and labels the rule arbitrary and capricious. Furthermore, the ICBA claims the 2021 letter bypassed required public notice and comment processes.
The lawsuit seeks to have the rule, the letter, and Protego’s approval vacated, while asking the court to bar the OCC from utilizing the contested policies to grant or conditionally approve future charters.
According to the complaint, the OCC has approved or conditionally approved 21 trust banks under the Trump administration, with at least 13 being crypto companies. Recent approvals and conditional approvals noted in the filing include:
- Circle, Ripple, BitGo, Fidelity Digital Assets, and Paxos (December 2025; Circle received final approval in July)
- Stripe-owned Bridge, Crypto.com, and Protego (February 2026)
- Coinbase (April 2, 2026)
- Laser Digital, Nomura’s digital asset arm (May 29, 2026)
- World Liberty Trust Company, backed by the Trump family (August 2026)
- Agora, Catena Labs, and Bastion (September 18, 2026)
ICBA President and CEO Rebeca Romero Rainey emphasized consumer protection concerns regarding the charters, stating that American consumers reasonably expect federally chartered banks to carry federal protections that digital assets held at crypto firms operating under a national trust charter do not possess.
The lawsuit was also filed ahead of the implementation of the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for US Stablecoins (GENIUS) Act. The ICBA argues that the legislation, set to take effect by January 18, 2027, cannot retroactively cure charters previously granted by the OCC.
