Coinbase has applied for a trust charter for federal insurance.

Important Step from Coinbase

Coinbase has applied to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), which is part of the U.S. Department of the Treasury, for a national trust charter. If approved, this step will subject the firm to federal regulatory oversight.

Coinbase plans to expand its existing custody services with this charter, to offer services such as payment and settlement. However, the company has stated that it does not intend to obtain a full banking charter.

Greg Tusar, Vice President of Institutional Products at Coinbase, stated in a blog post, "Coinbase has no intention of becoming a bank. Clear rules and the trust of our regulators and customers ensure that Coinbase operates safely and accurately under proper oversight while innovating."

Currently, Coinbase's regulated custody services are run through the Coinbase Custody Trust Company (CCTC). This company is subject to the BitLicense regulation in the state of New York. Introduced in 2015, this framework is one of the oldest state-level regulatory models for crypto in the U.S.

A federal trust charter would grant Coinbase the flexibility to offer new financial services without needing to obtain state-level approvals. Coinbase's move comes after other crypto companies such as Circle, Ripple, and Paxos also applied for federal oversight this year.