Circle gets an OCC bank charter as stablecoin competition heats up, shares surge 14%
Jeremy Allaire, CEO and co-founder of Circle Internet Group, issuer of one of the world’s largest stablecoins, and Circle Internet Group co-founder Sean Neville react as the opening bell rings on the day the company goes public on June 5, 2025 in New York City, United States.
New York Stock Exchange
Stablecoin issuer Apartment The company said it experienced a surge in premarket trading after the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) gave it approval to operate as a custodial bank on Friday.
The company’s shares gained more than 14%.
The approval gives the company the ability to directly manage reserves for regulated stablecoins, primarily the USDC stablecoin, which has more than $73 billion in circulation. The new bank will operate under the name Circle National Trust. Previously, Circle required third-party banks and custodians to hold cash and Treasury assets backing USDC.
The agreement does not give the green light for Circle to operate as a commercial bank that takes deposits and makes loans.
The news reflects a broader trend in the crypto industry where companies are trying to make a major shift from financial applications to financial infrastructure. Recent OCC actions have included approvals or filings from Coinbase, BitGo, Fidelity Digital Assets, Ripple, and Paxos, reflecting the race to own more of the regulated financial stack.
In addition, the agreement gives Circle a national banking regulator rather than being subject to state-based regulations; This is a major pain point for fast-paced startups operating in the highly regulated financial services industry. Instead of a single rulebook, companies regularly face 50 different rules that can not only slow growth but also increase costs.
The stablecoin race is heating up after Washington brought greater regulatory clarity to digital assets nearly a year ago with the GENIUS Act, which creates a federal framework for payment stablecoins.
As a result, traditional financial firms are increasingly looking to issue their own stablecoins because they can capture payment flows, deepen customer relationships, and build financial services on top of programmable digital dollars rather than relying on third-party issuers like Circle; This creates an increasing competitive problem for USDC.
Circle’s OCC regulation strengthens its appeal as regulated infrastructure for enterprise customers.
