WASHINGTON — Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) is pressing the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency over its approval of special national trust charters for cryptocurrency companies, arguing the agency is allowing firms to operate like banks while avoiding key banking regulations and safeguards.
In a letter sent to Comptroller Jonathan Gould, Warren, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Banking Committee, said the OCC since December 2025 has approved at least nine national trust charters for crypto companies that intend to engage in activities “far beyond the narrow set of activities permitted by law.”
“These companies are effectively crypto banks that want to evade the fundamental safeguards and obligations that come with being a bank,” Warren wrote, according to the letter released Tuesday by Senate Democrats.
‘Subject to Fewer Requirements’
Warren said national trust companies are subject to fewer requirements than full-service national banks because they generally do not accept insured deposits and are limited primarily to fiduciary activities such as acting as trustees or executors. She argued the OCC’s recent approvals improperly expand those powers and create what she described as “regulatory arbitrage.”
According to Warren, allowing national trust companies to function like banks while avoiding rules tied to federal deposit insurance, Community Reinvestment Act obligations and bank holding company oversight “would pose clear risks to consumers, create conflicts of interest, undermine the separation of banking and commerce, and threaten the safety and soundness of the banking system.”
The senator said the OCC has approved charters for firms including Ripple National Trust Bank, Coinbase National Trust Company, Paxos Trust Company, Fidelity Digital Asset Services, BitGo Bank & Trust and other crypto-related entities.
Non-Fiduciary Activities Cited
Warren said many of the companies’ business plans appear to involve non-fiduciary activities, including payments, lending, custody and stablecoin-related services. She cited examples in which firms proposed crypto trading platforms, lending and borrowing services, staking operations and payments products.
The Massachusetts Democrat also argued that Congress did not alter restrictions on national trust companies when it approved the GENIUS Act governing stablecoins, and said the OCC appears to be broadening the scope of the National Bank Act “by fiat.”
Warren requested copies of the full charter applications, legal analyses supporting the OCC’s decisions and communications between OCC officials and the White House or members of the Trump family related to the charter approvals. She asked the agency to provide the information by June 1.
