Ripple has received final approval from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency to establish Ripple National Trust Bank, according to a company announcement. The charter authorizes reserve management for its RLUSD stablecoin and fiduciary custody of digital assets under federal supervision.
The decision completes an organization process that followed conditional OCC approval in December 2025. Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse announced the final approval in an Oct. 27 post on X, ahead of the company's Ripple Swell event.
Big news heading into @RippleSwell: the @USOCC has granted final approval for Ripple National Trust Bank.
— Brad Garlinghouse (@bgarlinghouse) October 26, 2026
This gives Ripple a federally supervised platform to support $RLUSD and provide digital asset custody to enterprises.
We’ve always said crypto and banks work better…
RLUSD issuance will remain with Standard Custody & Trust Company, Ripple's trust company regulated by the New York Department of Financial Services. The new national trust bank will take responsibility for specified reserve functions rather than replace the stablecoin's issuer.
"For years, we've said crypto and banks work better together. Final approval for Ripple National Trust Bank is what that looks like in practice," Garlinghouse said in the announcement.
Reserve oversight splits from stablecoin issuance
The approved business plan gives Ripple National Trust Bank responsibility for segregated reserves that support RLUSD. It will also act as collateral trustee for those reserves on behalf of token holders.
Those responsibilities are distinct from the role of BNY, which Ripple identifies as RLUSD's primary reserve custodian. The announcement does not disclose any change to that arrangement.
Ripple said RLUSD has reached a market capitalization of $2.5 billion since its December 2024 launch. The figure comes from the company; the supplied materials do not include an independent market data source.
The stablecoin is backed by U.S. dollar deposits and U.S. government securities, alongside other cash equivalents. Ripple publishes monthly independent third-party attestations that cover the token's circulating supply and reserve assets.
The company already uses RLUSD within its payments infrastructure. The token also serves as collateral on Ripple Prime, so the bank's reserve responsibilities will support a stablecoin already in use across Ripple's institutional business.
The announcement does not specify how reserve management will transfer to the new bank or give a timetable for that process.
Trust charter carries a narrower banking mandate
The authorization also covers fiduciary digital asset custody when the bank opens. That gives Ripple a federally supervised entity through which it can hold digital assets for enterprise clients in a fiduciary capacity.
A national trust charter does not, by itself, mean an institution operates as a conventional retail bank. Federal law permits national banks whose operations are limited to trust company activities and related services. Such institutions can receive authorization without the deposit insurance requirement that generally applies to national banks.
Separately, Section 92a of the National Bank Act provides the legal framework for OCC-authorized fiduciary powers, including the authority to act as trustee. A trust charter should therefore not be read as a blanket authorization for every banking activity.
Ripple's announcement identifies reserve administration and fiduciary custody as approved activities. It does not announce consumer deposit accounts or a retail lending business.
The distinction matters for RLUSD holders: federal supervision of the trust bank is separate from the issuer's existing state oversight. Standard Custody will remain the entity that issues the token under New York regulation.
Opening date remains undisclosed
Ripple said it would continue work with the OCC and NYDFS as the bank begins operations. The release did not provide an opening date, and described its custody authority as available upon opening.
The company also linked that regulatory work to U.S. implementation of the GENIUS Act. Its announcement did not set out additional approvals or operational steps that might remain before launch.
For prospective custody clients, the release leaves several commercial details open. It does not identify initial customers, publish a fee schedule or state which digital assets the national trust bank will accept.
Nor does it specify when enterprises will be able to move assets into the new custody service. The announcement describes that service as part of the bank's approved business plan.
Matvii Diadkov
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