The Independent Community Bankers of America, or ICBA, filed a lawsuit Friday in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia against the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, challenging the agency’s authority to grant national trust bank charters to crypto companies. The group asked the court to vacate the final rule dated March 2, 2026, along with Interpretive Letter 1176. ICBA President and CEO Rebeca Romero Rainey said the charter gives crypto firms the credibility associated with a federal bank charter without requiring them to meet standards tied to federal deposit insurance, capital, liquidity, and the Community Reinvestment Act. ICBA also asked for the conditional charter issued to Protego Holdings to be revoked, alleging weaknesses in governance and risk controls. The case touches digital asset companies that have applied for or received OCC charters, including Circle, Ripple, Paxos, Fidelity, BitGo, Kraken parent Payward, Block, and World Liberty Financial. Separately, Senator Elizabeth Warren criticized the approvals as unlawful, while industry participants disputed that view. The OCC is also planning to complete stablecoin rules under the GENIUS Act before November, according to Decrypt.
The Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA) filed suit Friday in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia against the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), challenging the agency’s authority to grant national trust bank charters to crypto companies.
The group asked the court to vacate the final rule dated March 2, 2026, as well as Interpretive Letter 1176.
ICBA President and CEO Rebeca Romero Rainey said the charters allow crypto firms to benefit from the credibility of a federal bank charter without having to comply with requirements tied to federal deposit insurance, capital and liquidity standards, and the Community Reinvestment Act.
ICBA also asked for Protego Holdings’ conditional charter to be revoked, saying the company has shortcomings in governance and risk controls.
The lawsuit involves digital asset firms that have applied for or received OCC charters, including Circle, Ripple, Paxos, Fidelity, BitGo, Payward, the parent company of Kraken, Block, and World Liberty Financial.
Separately, Senator Elizabeth Warren criticized the approvals as unlawful, while the industry pushed back on that position. The OCC is planning to complete stablecoin rules under the GENIUS Act before November, according to Decrypt.
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