Stripe’s Stablecoin Arm Wins Initial U.S. Bank Charter Approval

Stripe’s stablecoin infrastructure firm, Bridge, has received conditional approval from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) to establish a national bank trust charter.

The approval, granted on February 12, 2026, allows the company to move forward with plans to operate as a federally regulated entity under the name Bridge National Trust.

If finalized, the charter would mark a significant step in integrating stablecoin infrastructure directly into the U.S. banking framework.

What the Charter Would Allow

Upon final approval, Bridge National Trust would be authorized to operate under direct federal oversight and perform several core functions:

• Stablecoin Issuance
  Bridge would be able to directly issue and manage digital dollar stablecoins within a regulated structure.
• Reserve Management
  The firm would oversee the assets backing its stablecoins, ensuring compliance with federal reserve standards and supervisory requirements.
• Custody Services
  Bridge would provide secure digital asset custody for enterprises, fintech platforms, and institutional partners.

The charter framework aligns with the GENIUS Act, passed last year, which created a federal regulatory pathway specifically for stablecoin issuers.

Strategic Context

Stripe acquired Bridge in early 2025 for $1.1 billion, its largest acquisition to date. The move signaled Stripe’s intention to build stablecoin-powered payment infrastructure at scale.

Bridge is part of what many consider the first wave of crypto-native firms receiving conditional national trust approvals. In December 2025, similar approvals were granted to companies including Circle, Ripple, Paxos, BitGo, and Fidelity Digital Assets.

The approval reflects a broader regulatory shift toward formalizing digital asset infrastructure within traditional financial supervision rather than treating it as a parallel system.

Opposition and Final Steps

Despite the milestone, the charter has faced pushback from groups such as the National Community Reinvestment Coalition (NCRC) and the Bank Policy Institute (BPI). Critics have raised concerns about consumer protection standards and potential systemic risk associated with stablecoin issuance under a trust structure.

The OCC has not provided a timeline for final approval. Bridge must satisfy all regulatory conditions before the charter becomes fully operational.

For now, the conditional approval positions Stripe’s stablecoin arm closer to becoming a federally supervised digital asset institution, a development that could reshape how stablecoins are issued, backed, and integrated into the U.S. financial system.

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