Forbes: U.S. Regulatory Easing Drives Crypto Institutions to Vie for Banking Licenses for "Licensed Banking Transformation"

Odaily News As the U.S. regulatory environment gradually loosens, the fintech industry is accelerating its shift towards "licensed banking transformation." Last year saw a significant acceleration in the approval of trust bank licenses. The U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) has conditionally approved applications from five companies, including Circle, Ripple, BitGo, Fidelity Digital Assets, and Paxos, for national trust bank charters. It is reported that holding a banking license is also seen as an important means to hedge against capital market volatility. Industry insiders believe the era where fintech companies merely served as front-end channels for traditional banks is ending. An increasing number of digital finance and crypto institutions are now directly seeking banking licenses. By accepting insured deposits and gaining access to the federal payment system, crypto companies can secure more stable and lower-cost funding sources. (Forbes)