ICBA sues OCC over crypto bank charter fast-tracking

The Independent Community Bankers of America filed suit against the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency on Friday, alleging the regulator opened a back door into the federal banking system for cryptocurrency firms through its March 2 final rule on national trust bank charters.

The lawsuit targets Interpretive Letter No. 1176 and the final rule built around it. ICBA argues both exceed the authority Congress granted the OCC under the National Bank Act, allowing crypto companies to obtain federal bank charters while bypassing Community Reinvestment Act obligations, consolidated supervision, capital and liquidity standards, and FDIC insurance requirements that apply to insured depository institutions.

ICBA President and CEO Rebeca Romero Rainey called the trust charter a side door that delivers the credibility of a federal bank charter without its corresponding obligations. The Bank Policy Institute, responding separately, said it supports bringing novel entities into the regulated banking system provided they face the same rules as every other chartered institution engaged in the same activities.