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Coinbase
received conditional approval from the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) to operate as a trust bank, the company said Thursday.
If finalized, the crypto exchange will be able to operate payment products in addition to its custody business under federal supervision, Coinbase chief legal officer Paul Grewal told CNBC.
The company made clear it will not become a commercial bank, take retail deposits or engage in fractional reserve banking — the practice employed by big banks of keeping just a fraction of customers deposits in reserve while lending out the rest. Still, a trust charter would give it the legal authority, access to banking infrastructure and regulatory credibility to move, hold, and settle money more efficiently.
