Stripe’s Stablecoin firm Bridge Wins Conditional OCC Approval to Launch National Trust Bank

• Bridge received conditional approval from U.S. regulators to form a national trust bank.
• If finalized, Bridge can issue and manage stablecoins under direct federal oversight.

Bridge, a stablecoin company owned by Stripe, has received conditional approval to form a national trust bank from the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of Currency (OCC). The approval makes the firm manage stablecoin under federal oversight. 

Bridge’s move once it’s fully approved

If it is fully approved, then the bridge will have access to issue stablecoin, hold digital assets, and manage stablecoin reserves and can operate under the U.S. federal banking regulations. This new entity would operate under the name Bride National Trust Bank if it gets full approval. Stripe acquired Bridge in 2024 for $1.1 billion, and this move strengthens Stripe’s expansion into blockchain and digital dollar payments. 

Bridge said that it has already met all the compliance standards outlined in the GENIUS Act, the law that was passed by the U.S. last year to regulate stablecoin issuers. However, federal regulators, including the OCC and the Federal Reserve, are still finalizing the detailed rules under the law. But conditional approval positions bridge strongly to operate legally under the developing federal framework. 

Apart from Bridge, several major crypto firms, such as Circle, Ripple, Paxos, and BitGo, have recently received similar conditional approval from the OCC. This shows a broader shift in the U.S. stablecoin industry towards regulated banking structures. Bridge currently powers stablecoin issuance for products such as Phantom’s CASH and MetaMask’s mUSD. 

OCC has not yet announced the final approval. Currently, Bridge must meet specific requirements before receiving full authorization, and once approved, it will become a federally regulated stablecoin issuer in the U.S.

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