{"id":3292,"date":"2025-05-08T20:16:35","date_gmt":"2025-05-08T20:16:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/digkrypton.com\/index.php\/2025\/05\/08\/occ-gives-banks-the-green-light-to-offer-bitcoin-and-crypto-custody-and-trading-services\/"},"modified":"2025-05-08T20:16:35","modified_gmt":"2025-05-08T20:16:35","slug":"occ-gives-banks-the-green-light-to-offer-bitcoin-and-crypto-custody-and-trading-services","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/digkrypton.com\/index.php\/2025\/05\/08\/occ-gives-banks-the-green-light-to-offer-bitcoin-and-crypto-custody-and-trading-services\/","title":{"rendered":"OCC Gives Banks the Green Light to Offer Bitcoin and Crypto Custody and Trading Services"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"https:\/\/bitcoinmagazine.com\/\">Bitcoin Magazine<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/bitcoinmagazine.com\/news\/occ-gives-banks-the-green-light-to-offer-bitcoin-and-crypto-custody-and-trading-services\">OCC Gives Banks the Green Light to Offer Bitcoin and Crypto Custody and Trading Services<\/a><\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) has issued <a href=\"https:\/\/www.occ.gov\/news-issuances\/news-releases\/2025\/nr-occ-2025-42.html\" target=\"_blank\">new guidance<\/a> confirming that national banks and federal savings associations can engage in crypto-asset custody and trading services. This clarification comes in Interpretive <a href=\"https:\/\/www.occ.gov\/topics\/charters-and-licensing\/interpretations-and-actions\/2025\/int1184.pdf\" target=\"_blank\">Letter 1184<\/a>, which outlines that banks may buy and sell digital assets held in custody at their customers\u2019 direction and may also outsource crypto-related activities, such as custody and execution services, to third parties. However, banks must ensure they implement proper third-party risk management practices.<\/p>\n<p>This decision is important as the OCC\u2019s guidance enables banks to participate more actively in the rapidly growing cryptocurrency market, which now includes over 50 million Americans. The OCC\u2019s updated rules are part of its ongoing efforts to ensure that banks can responsibly engage in emerging financial technologies while protecting consumers and complying with applicable laws.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<p>OCC-regulated banks may buy and sell assets held in custody and are permitted to outsource bank-permissible crypto-asset activities, including custody and execution services. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/0ScQdgNaS6\" target=\"_blank\">https:\/\/t.co\/0ScQdgNaS6<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/J5dEkx4WUL\" target=\"_blank\">pic.twitter.com\/J5dEkx4WUL<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 OCC (@USOCC) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/USOCC\/status\/1920180546837053516?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\">May 7, 2025<\/a>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Rodney Hood, Acting Comptroller of the Currency, emphasized in the video that \u201cthis digitalization of financial services is not a trend. It is a transformation.\u201d He further explained that regulated banks can provide custody services, including the safekeeping and secure storage of <a href=\"https:\/\/bitcoinmagazine.com\/guides\/what-is-bitcoin\">Bitcoin<\/a> and other digital assets, on behalf of their customers. Additionally, \u201cthe banks we supervise also may buy and sell cryptocurrencies they hold in custody at their customer\u2019s direction.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The letter further states that banks can provide other important services, such as recordkeeping, <a href=\"https:\/\/bitcoinmagazine.com\/business\/what-to-know-about-bitcoin-and-taxes\">tax reporting<\/a>, and compliance services. The OCC also made it clear that banks may use sub-custodians to provide these services, but only \u201csubject to appropriate third-party risk management practices.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Rodney Hood also emphasized that \u201cwhile a range of cryptocurrency and digital asset activities may be performed by banks and their third parties, I want to be clear that the OCC expects these activities to be conducted in a safe and sound manner and in compliance with applicable law.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The clarification from the OCC is significant as it gives banks the ability to meet the growing demand for cryptocurrency-related services while ensuring they maintain security and comply with regulatory standards. In the video, Hood stressed that the digital shift is not just changing the way people engage with money but transforming the entire financial landscape.<\/p>\n<p>For banks, this presents an opportunity to broaden their offerings by providing services related to digital assets in addition to traditional financial services. As Hood pointed out, regulated banks can now help customers manage their crypto portfolios just as they would traditional assets, with services like tax reporting and transaction recording.<\/p>\n<p>However, banks must ensure they manage the risks involved in crypto custody. The OCC\u2019s emphasis on \u201csafe and sound\u201d operations means that any crypto-related activity must be carried out securely and in full compliance with the law.<\/p>\n<p>This updated guidance from the OCC marks an important step in integrating digital assets into the regulated financial system. With these clear rules in place, national banks are better positioned to serve customers while ensuring that crypto-related activities are conducted responsibly and securely.For more information, visit <a href=\"https:\/\/www.occ.gov\/\" target=\"_blank\">here.<\/a><\/p>\n<p>This post <a href=\"https:\/\/bitcoinmagazine.com\/news\/occ-gives-banks-the-green-light-to-offer-bitcoin-and-crypto-custody-and-trading-services\">OCC Gives Banks the Green Light to Offer Bitcoin and Crypto Custody and Trading Services<\/a> first appeared on <a href=\"https:\/\/bitcoinmagazine.com\/\">Bitcoin Magazine<\/a> and is written by <a href=\"https:\/\/bitcoinmagazine.com\/authors\/oscarperez\">Oscar Zarraga Perez<\/a>.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Bitcoin Magazine OCC Gives Banks the Green Light to Offer Bitcoin and Crypto Custody and Trading Services The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) has issued new guidance confirming that national banks and federal savings associations can engage in crypto-asset custody and trading services. This clarification comes in Interpretive Letter 1184, which outlines [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":3293,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-3292","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-bitcoin"},"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/digkrypton.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3292","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/digkrypton.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/digkrypton.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/digkrypton.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3292"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/digkrypton.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3292\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/digkrypton.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3293"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/digkrypton.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3292"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/digkrypton.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3292"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/digkrypton.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3292"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}