Ripple Secures OCC Approval for Ripple National Trust Bank to Scale Institutional Digital Assets

Ripple has secured final approval from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) to charter Ripple National Trust Bank (RNTB). This move brings a major blockchain player under federal supervision, providing a regulated foundation for its stablecoin reserves and institutional custody services as the U.S. financial sector implements the new GENIUS Act framework.

What was announced

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) has granted final approval for the chartering of Ripple National Trust Bank (RNTB). This follows a period of organization after the bank received conditional approval in December 2025. As a federally supervised national trust bank, RNTB is authorized to perform several key functions within the digital asset ecosystem, reinforcing the company's strategy of building infrastructure within the regulated financial system.

Specifically, the bank will manage the segregated reserves that support Ripple USD (RLUSD). It will also serve as the collateral trustee of these reserves for the benefit of stablecoin holders and provide fiduciary digital asset custody services. While RNTB provides federal oversight, RLUSD itself will continue to be issued by Standard Custody & Trust Company (SCTC), which is regulated by the New York Department of Financial Services (NYDFS) as a limited purpose trust company.

Since its launch in December 2024, RLUSD has reached a market capitalization of $2.5 billion. The stablecoin is integrated into Ripple’s payments infrastructure and used as collateral within Ripple Prime. Its reserves, which consist of U.S. dollar deposits, government securities, and cash equivalents, are held primarily by BNY as the reserve custodian. Ripple maintains transparency through monthly independent third-party attestations of the circulating supply and assets. The establishment of RNTB allows Ripple to extend its business plan into broader fiduciary custody for enterprises integrating digital assets into treasury and trading operations.

The companies involved

Ripple is a provider of blockchain and crypto solutions for both traditional and digital finance. The company has spent over a decade developing financial infrastructure designed for institutional use at scale, focusing on payments, custody, and capital markets. Headquartered in San Francisco, Ripple has established a significant presence in the market, particularly through its XRP Ledger and its USD-pegged stablecoin, RLUSD.

The newly chartered Ripple National Trust Bank (RNTB) represents the company's expansion into federally supervised banking. It operates alongside Standard Custody & Trust Company (SCTC), Ripple’s New York-regulated limited purpose trust company. By securing a national trust charter, Ripple joins a small group of digital asset-native firms that have successfully navigated the OCC’s rigorous approval process. This dual-regulatory approach—combining state-level oversight from the NYDFS with federal supervision from the OCC—is intended to meet the compliance requirements of large-scale financial institutions. The company’s partnership with BNY, a major global custodian, further anchors its operations within the traditional banking system.

What FF News has reported before

FF News has closely followed Ripple’s efforts to bridge the gap between blockchain technology and traditional banking. In October 2026, we reported that Ripple and BNY Expand Digital Asset Alliance to Modernize Tokenized Trade Finance, a move that signaled the deepening relationship between the fintech and the world’s largest custodian. Shortly before that, coverage detailed how Cross River and Ripple Partner to Integrate RLUSD Stablecoin into Core Banking Infrastructure. This partnership was a critical step in embedding the RLUSD stablecoin directly into the XRP Ledger for use by traditional financial institutions. These developments highlight a consistent strategy of building regulated on-ramps for institutional digital asset adoption.

What this means

The granting of a national trust charter to a blockchain-native firm is a significant milestone for the U.S. fintech sector. It suggests that the OCC is finding a path forward for digital asset firms to operate within the federal perimeter, provided they meet high regulatory bars. This puts pressure on other stablecoin issuers who operate primarily under state-level or offshore regimes to seek similar federal validation. As the industry moves toward the implementation of the GENIUS Act, the competition for institutional trust will likely hinge on which players can offer the most robust, supervised infrastructure. The move also raises questions about whether other major crypto firms will now accelerate their own applications for national charters to avoid being left behind in the race for institutional capital.