Skip to main content
Aeterna Sol

Crypto markets, protocols and policy

Ripple says OCC approves national trust bank for RLUSD

Ripple says the OCC approved its national trust bank, which would manage RLUSD reserves under federal supervision while leaving issuance with a New York affiliate.

The Aeterna Sol Editors

Ripple says OCC approves national trust bank for RLUSD

$2.5 billion is the market value Ripple says RLUSD has reached as the company announced final OCC approval for Ripple National Trust Bank on Oct. 26. The proposed charter would put reserve management and custody under federal supervision, while RLUSD would remain issued by a New York-regulated Ripple affiliate.

Ripple’s announcement of the final approval says the bank will manage RLUSD’s segregated reserves, act as their collateral trustee for token holders and provide fiduciary digital asset custody. CoinDesk reported the announcement, citing Ripple chief executive Brad Garlinghouse and the company’s release.

What would the new bank do for RLUSD?

Ripple National Trust Bank would oversee reserve management and hold a trustee role for the assets backing RLUSD, according to Ripple. That gives the stablecoin’s reserve structure a federal layer of oversight.

The bank would not take over issuance. Ripple says Standard Custody & Trust Company, its limited-purpose trust company regulated by the New York Department of Financial Services, will continue issuing RLUSD.

That distinction matters if you hold or use the token: the issuer and the proposed national trust bank have separate jobs. Ripple’s announcement also says BNY is RLUSD’s primary reserve custodian, and that the company publishes monthly independent attestations of the token’s supply and reserve assets.

Does the public OCC record show final approval?

Ripple says the OCC announced its final approval on Oct. 26, but the OCC decision letter we reviewed is dated Dec. 12, 2025, and documents only preliminary conditional approval. The OCC’s letter on Ripple’s charter application says final approval and permission to begin business would come after pre-opening requirements were met.

That letter describes the planned bank’s work as managing RLUSD’s reserve on a directed basis, serving as collateral trustee for holders and providing cryptocurrency custody to institutional customers. It also says the proposed bank did not plan to issue stablecoins.

CoinDesk reported the final approval based on Garlinghouse’s announcement and Ripple’s release. We did not find a later OCC decision letter confirming that final step in the material reviewed. The distinction leaves the company’s report as the basis for the latest status, while the OCC document confirms the earlier conditional approval and proposed activities.

When can the bank start operating?

Ripple says the bank will provide fiduciary digital asset custody once it opens, but its Oct. 26 release gives no opening date. It says Ripple will continue working with the OCC, NYDFS and other regulators as operations begin.

For now, the immediate change Ripple describes is federal supervision of reserve management and trustee services. RLUSD remains issued by the New York-regulated affiliate, and Ripple’s announcement does not say that the new bank is already operating.

Sources