Anchorage Digital says proposed Fed payment account cannot replace a master account

Anchorage Digital said a payment account proposed by the U.S. Federal Reserve would not serve as a workable substitute for a traditional master account. In a comment letter, the crypto bank backed the Fed’s effort to modernize access to the payment system, but argued that the proposed structure falls short in several areas that matter for daily settlement and liquidity management. According to Anchorage, the account would not include access to FedACH, would impose overnight balance limits, would not provide intraday liquidity, and would not pay interest on reserve balances. The company said those features make it materially different from the master accounts that member national banks have held for more than a century. Anchorage also said the lack of FedACH access would leave it reliant on intermediaries for routine payment settlement. The firm added that any slimmed-down master account should include interest on reserves. The debate follows a proposal raised last year by Federal Reserve Governor Christopher J. Waller, who introduced the concept of a “slim master account.”