A long-awaited breakthrough has occurred in the US banking system. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), in a letter dated December 9th, authorized banks to act as intermediaries in cryptocurrency transactions. This officially removes one of the biggest uncertainties surrounding the entry of traditional financial institutions into the crypto market.
The OCC's announcement allows banks to operate using a "riskless principal" model. In this model, banks match buy and sell orders on behalf of their clients, but do not add the asset to their own balance sheets. Thus, they are not exposed to price volatility. In other words, banks will function as a kind of crypto intermediary; offering a regulated, fast, and more secure alternative for clients.
In the last few years, particularly during the 2021-2024 period, both the Fed and the OCC had adopted a very cautious approach to crypto assets. Liquidity risks and volatility warnings were prominent, and banks' crypto initiatives were limited to strict supervision and temporary pilot programs. Now, this approach is undergoing a radical transformation. The letter explicitly states that banks can now move towards full-scale integration and that crypto transactions will be conducted under OCC oversight.
With this authorization, the OCC emphasized that enabling customers to access crypto through a regulated bank is critical for both security and transparency. It is expected to create an alternative, especially to unregulated or poorly supervised exchanges. By having banks act as a bridge between the customer and the counterparty, the risk of investors being exposed to unknown exchanges or anonymous trading markets will be reduced.
This transformation creates a new business model not only for customers but also for banks. Traditional financial institutions will be able to offer crypto brokerage services within their own structures; trading infrastructures can be integrated into the banking system. Thus, the long-discussed "crypto trading through banks" model is truly becoming a reality in the US. This step is expected to facilitate access to crypto assets for millions of Americans.
14 banks have applied
OCC Chairman Jonathan Gould stated at a blockchain conference that the technological transformation of banks is inevitable. “Custody and electronic custody services have been conducted digitally for decades. There’s no reason for us to view digital assets differently,” said Gould, emphasizing that the banking system has the capacity to evolve from the telegraph to the blockchain era. Gould also noted that they received 14 new bank applications this year, some of which were digital asset-focused. This figure is almost equal to the total for the last four years. According to the OCC, this indicates that crypto-integrated banking models could rapidly become widespread. Despite some objections from industry representatives, the OCC is clear: a crypto-compatible banking structure will both provide better service to customers and support local economies. Moreover, the OCC has been overseeing crypto-focused national trust institutions like Anchorage Digital for years. Therefore, it sees no risk in managing these new processes.
