A U.S. community bank organization sued the OCC to prevent crypto companies from entering the banking system through trust licenses

Odaily Planet Daily News Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA) sued the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on Friday, challenging its authority to grant national trust bank licenses to crypto companies and asking the court to revoke the March 2, 2026 Final Rule and Interpretation Letter No. 1176.

ICBA President and CEO Rebeca Romero Rainey said the relevant licenses allow crypto companies to gain the credibility of a federal banking license without having to comply with requirements such as federal deposit insurance, capital and liquidity standards and the Community Reinvestment Act. ICBA is also seeking to revoke Protego Holdings' conditional license, citing deficiencies in its governance and risk controls.

The lawsuit involves digital asset companies that have applied for or been approved for OCC licenses, including Circle, Ripple, Paxos, Fidelity, BitGo, Kraken parent company Payward, Block and World Liberty Financial. Senator Elizabeth Warren separately accused the relevant approval of being illegal, and related industries objected to this; the OCC is planning to complete the "GENIUS Act" stable currency rules by November. (Decrypt)