The Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA) has filed a lawsuit against the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC). The legal action challenges rules that allow crypto-focused firms, including Circle, Ripple, BitGo, and Paxos, to obtain national trust bank charters.
The dispute centers on a final rule published by the OCC in March 2026. The rule clarified that national banks limited to trust-company operations can also conduct related non-fiduciary activities. At the time, the regulator stated the rule neither expanded nor contracted its existing chartering authority.
Rebeca Romero Rainey, president and CEO of the ICBA, argued that Congress never intended for the national trust charter to serve as a side door for crypto companies. She stated that the pathway allows these firms to gain the credibility of a federal bank charter while avoiding requirements such as FDIC insurance, Community Reinvestment Act obligations, and standard capital and liquidity frameworks for insured depository institutions.
The lawsuit asks the US District Court for the District of Columbia to declare both the OCC's final rule and related Interpretive Letter N1176 unlawful.
The legal challenge follows a wave of approvals for digital asset entities. Circle recently received final authorization from the OCC to establish First National Digital Currency Bank, N.A., operating as Circle National Trust, which allows the USDC issuer to provide fiduciary crypto custody and could bring parts of its stablecoin reserve management under direct OCC supervision. Additionally, Ripple secured approval for Ripple National Trust Bank, while firms like BitGo and Paxos have also engaged in the approval process.
