Blockchain infrastructure company Zerohash has announced that it has applied for a US National Trust Bank charter – a move that could strengthen the company’s position as a leading crypto payment rail provider to the TradFi sector.
On Wednesday, Zerohash said it will apply to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency to operate a federally regulated trust bank, allowing it to expand its stablecoin and custodial services to the banks, brokers and fintechs that serve it.
“With the rapidly maturing federal legislative and regulatory landscape for stablecoins and digital assets, the OCC National Trust Bank’s charter allows zerohash to continue to offer its services within the federal framework, including activities covered by the GENIUS Act.”
Some of its prominent partners include Morgan Stanley, Interactive Brokers, Stripe and Franklin Templeton.
The application for “Zerohash National Trust Bank” was sent on February 27.
A national bank trust charter authorizes a financial institution to engage in fiduciary activities such as trust services, custody, and custody of assets.
It has been one of the most sought-after licenses since US President Donald Trump signed the GENIUS Act in July.
The OCC granted conditional licenses to Crypto.com, Bridge and Stripe last month, adding to the bank charters obtained by Circle, Ripple, Fidelity Digital Assets, BitGo and Paxos with conditional approval in December.
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Zerohash’s partner, Morgan Stanley, revealed on Friday that it also applied for a bank charter last month, while financial services firm Payoneer filed on February 24.
The Trump family’s World Liberty Financial also applied in January to expand the use of its stablecoin USD1 (USD1) for a single coin, but is still awaiting a decision.
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Crypto trading platform Laser Digital also submitted an application in January, while Coinbase has been waiting for a decision on its application since October.
In December, Comptroller of the Currency Jonathan Gould said that new entrants to the federal banking sector are “good for consumers, the banking industry and the economy” because they provide consumers with access to products, services and sources of credit while keeping the banking system competitive and dynamic.
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