The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency released guidance last Tuesday that national banks can now act as intermediaries in cryptocurrency trading without holding the assets on their balance sheets. Under Interpretative Letter 1188, banks can engage in so-called “risk-free principal transactions”—buying cryptocurrency from one customer and selling it to another—just as brokers never take inventory positions themselves.
The OCC confirmed that this activity falls within the “business of banking” under federal law, applying the same technologically neutral stance they have maintained for decades.
Growing institutional interest and charter requests
Comptroller Jonathan Gould has been redirecting the agency toward this type of integration since his confirmation. Just one day before the letter was made public, he convened the Blockchain Association’s political summit in Washington and rejected traditional banks fighting for the entry of cryptocurrencies into the regulated system.
His agency received 14 new applications for banking charters this year, more than in the previous four years combined, and some come from global giants like Coinbase, Circle and Ripple, all seeking federal oversight. Gould said there is “no justification to view cryptocurrencies any differently” than any other asset, noting that banks have handled electronic custody services for decades.
Promotion of private banking and changes in iGaming payments
Evidence from the private banking segment reinforces his view, as institutions add crypto options that would have been unthinkable a short time ago. PNC became the first major US bank to offer direct bitcoin spot trading to private wealth clients through Coinbase’s infrastructure, while Bank of America began urging its 15,000 wealth advisors to recommend 1% to 4% cryptocurrency allocations.
Other busy sectors are also feeling the shift, especially in places where slow payments never made sense. Most iGaming platforms constantly move money during peak hours, so they had to act early and rebuild around blockchain since most players expect payouts in minutes instead of three days in normal banking.
In an August 2025 listing, industry expert Sofia Rebuck described setups where results are public on-chain, payments are made quickly, and no documents are needed because everything is executed through a simple wallet link. It’s still unclear how banks match that kind of speed, even though they bring oversight and structure that pure crypto platforms never incorporated.
Policy reversal and increased federal oversight
The policy change stands in stark contrast to the previous administration, when banks retreated and crypto companies ran into constant obstacles. Support for the “growth and responsible use of digital assets” was laid out in an executive order from President Trump in January, with a July roadmap from his Digital Asset Markets Working Group outlining how banks could join the market.
The SEC also closed 89 cryptocurrency cases just weeks after forming its new task force, a move that marked a clear reset within the agency.
National trust banks already oversee nearly $2 trillion in custodial assets, and including cryptocurrencies under that structure fits with how the market really works now. Gould noted that more cryptocurrency applicants are now entering the OCC review process, with the goal of achieving full federal oversight.
Operational monitoring and market reaction
Settlement risk received the most attention in the OCC letter, along with a reminder that banks have long managed exposure to counterparties in other markets. Supervision remains, but banks no longer need to submit an application for each crypto share.
Bitcoin jumped more than 4% after the announcement, touching $93,000 and then retreating, with around $46 billion moving on the market in a single day. Gould said national banks consult with the OCC “almost daily” on crypto products, hinting that the actual pace of institutional commitment is ahead of what most people see.
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