Warren Targets OCC Over Crypto Bank Charters as 9 Firms Face Regulatory Firestorm

Key Takeaways:

• Senator Elizabeth Warren criticized the OCC’s failure to implement typical banking practices in the crypto space.
• Since the end of 2025, the OCC is reportedly giving at least 9 crypto companies national trust charters.
• The approvals have the potential to introduce greater risks to consumers and the U.S. banking system that would stem from cryptocurrency custody, lending and stablecoins, according to Warren.

Elizabeth Warren is calling it a day in the crypto these are the excuses phase. Elizabeth Warren takes her battle to spread crypto in U.S. banking to a whole new level. The Massachusetts senator, in a new letter to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency’s Jonathan Gould, asked how the office is justifying the granting of crypto companies multiple national trust charters, which could be issued in situations where the companies are likely violating the intent of federal banking law.

The letter puts new pressure on regulators as crypto companies expand their foray into the payment sector and into holding cryptocurrency and into stablecoin operations.

Read More: CLARITY Act Vote Set for May 14 as Coinbase and US Senators Push Crypto Rules

Warren Says Crypto Firms Are Acting Like Banks

Warren argued that several companies granted national trust charters appear to function more like full-service crypto banks than traditional trust institutions.

The senator says such companies can be doing work that “largely relates to digital asset custody, payments and lending or stablecoin operations and evading the more stringent regulations for federally regulated banks.

She called the situation “regulatory arbitrage” and suggested that cryptocurrency companies could be afforded banking-type benefits without being protected under the banking system’s regulations.

Warren also stated that approving the powers also compromise the historic division between banking and commerce in the United States.

OCC Charter Approvals Draw Scrutiny

Earlier this month, the senator said the OCC has authorized no fewer than nine trust charters related to cryptocurrencies since December 2025, and that more applications are pending approval.

Questions Over Trust Company Limits

National trust charters are narrower than full banking licenses. They generally focus on fiduciary and custody services and do not allow FDIC-insured deposits or standard commercial lending.

However, Warren said several applicants submitted business plans that extend far beyond fiduciary trust activities. She highlighted “payment processing that relies on language basis”, “stablecoin infrastructure” and “custodial functions that are similar to banking services”.

The call for greater regulation comes at a time when cryptocurrency companies are increasingly appealing for federal regulation rather than trying to comply with a mishmash of state laws. In the past few years, several large digital asset firms have turned to trust-bank systems as a means to broaden the scope of their custody and settlement businesses.

Read More: 70% of US Voters Demand Crypto Rules as CLARITY Act Wins Bipartisan Backing

Warren Requests Internal OCC Documents

Now, the senator wants the OCC to share with him a host of documents and records, such as the charters, legal assessments unrelated to the approvals, and communications with the White House or any Trump family members.

She asked for the materials to be handled by 1st of June 2026.

The shift marks part of a larger political struggle involving crypto regulation in Washington as the Trump administration remains a proponent of more favorable policies for crypto companies.

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