Who is the real bank? An analysis of the regulatory landscape of national trust banks, chartered banks, and encryption giants.

As crypto assets continue to move towards the mainstream, financial institutions are also re-evaluating their compliance roadmaps. Especially in the United States, obtaining qualifications as a "National Trust Bank" or "Chartered Bank" has become key for digital asset companies to gain regulatory approval. Giants like Fidelity Digital Assets, Kraken, and Circle have chosen different paths, and this article delves into the differences in these regulatory frameworks and their actual impact on the industry.

National Trust Bank vs. Chartered Bank: The Fork in Financial Regulation

National Trust Bank is a special institution licensed by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), focusing on trust, asset custody, and investment management services. These banks typically do not accept deposits or provide loans, and therefore do not need to be mandated to join FDIC deposit insurance like traditional banks.

In contrast, chartered banks possess complete banking functions, including accepting deposits, issuing loans, and providing checking accounts. The licenses of these banks may come from federal or state governments and are subject to strict scrutiny by the FDIC and other regulatory agencies.

Comparison Items National Trust Bank Chartered Bank Issuing Authority Federal OCC Federal or State Government Accepts Deposits Usually does not accept Yes Provides Loans Usually does not provide Yes FDIC Insurance Not required Mostly required Main Service Targets High net worth individuals, institutional investors Public, businesses, retail users

Fidelity Digital Assets: Suspended at the "State Trust" level

As the digital asset division of traditional financial giant Fidelity, Fidelity Digital Assets has not yet obtained a national trust bank license. According to official information, it currently holds a "state-level trust company" license, providing digital asset custody and trading services only in a limited number of states.

Although there have been continuous reports in the market that Fidelity intends to apply for a national trust bank license, as of July 2025, there has been no official confirmation or approval. In contrast, Anchorage Digital successfully obtained the first national digital asset trust bank license issued by OCC in 2021, showing that while this path is feasible, the threshold is not low.

(The U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Financial Crimes Task Force is investigating Anchorage Digital for potential Compliance issues)

Kraken: holds a banking license, but not the kind you think.

Kraken obtained a state banking license called "Special Purpose Depository Institution (SPDI)" in Wyoming, USA, through its subsidiary Kraken Financial as early as 2020. This made Kraken the first cryptocurrency company in the United States to hold a banking license, but this license is very different from that of a traditional commercial bank.

The SPDI license allows Kraken to provide:

Digital Asset Custody Services

Exclusive deposit accounts for institutional clients

The identity of a "Qualified Custodian" under Compliance

However, it also has many restrictions, such as not being allowed to engage in lending, not being able to handle retail deposits like a regular bank, and not being protected by FDIC insurance. In addition, SPDI is authorized by state governments rather than approved by the federal OCC, so Kraken is neither a national trust bank nor a national chartered bank.

(Kraken launches Krak App: One-click cross-border encryption payment, idle funds can also earn 10% return)

Why have these licenses become the "new battlefield" for encryption companies?

For companies focused on asset custody, the National Trust Bank license brings two major benefits:

National operating authority: Eliminate the cumbersome process of applying for licenses state by state.

Federal Regulatory Halo: Increase Institutional Client Trust and Attract Traditional Financial Capital.

For companies that intend to offer comprehensive banking services, obtaining a chartered banking status (such as a commercial banking license) remains a more challenging but potentially greater goal.

Trust banks are not equivalent to real banks; the traditional financial sector is issuing warnings.

The difference between a national trust bank and a chartered bank seems to be merely a technical detail of regulatory scope, but it actually represents a strategic choice for companies on the path of integrating encryption with traditional finance. Fidelity adopts a prudent approach, still operating as a state-level trust; Kraken, on the other hand, enters the compliance market through a specialized license in Wyoming. However, this competition of "who is a legitimate bank" has also sparked strong interest from the traditional financial industry.

In July 2025, five major financial industry associations, including the American Bankers Association (ABA), America’s Credit Unions, and the Consumer Bankers Association (CBA), jointly sent a formal letter to the federal regulatory agency OCC, warning against the hasty approval of digital asset companies applying for national trust bank licenses. The letter pointed out that the majority of the encryption companies' applications were too vague and did not clearly demonstrate specific "trustee" functions, which are far from the core responsibilities of traditional trust banks.

More importantly, these associations believe that if the OCC approves companies without substantial trust business to obtain national trust bank status, it would effectively open a "regulatory backdoor." These companies could gain the prestige of a national bank while avoiding comprehensive regulation, which not only undermines regulatory fairness but also poses systemic risks. The associations urge the OCC to suspend the review and initiate a more open and transparent policy consultation process.

Therefore, while crypto companies are chasing regulatory status, regulators and traditional financial institutions are continuously sounding the alarm, warning against letting "trust banks" become loopholes under a guise of legitimacy. This battle surrounding banking licenses may become one of the focal battlegrounds of financial regulation in the coming years.

This article explores who the real banks are? An analysis of the regulatory landscape of national trust banks, chartered banks, and encryption giants. Originally appeared in Chain News ABMedia.