Ripple, a fintech company building blockchain and crypto for cross-border transactions, and tokenization, can now run a specialized bank under U.S. federal supervision.

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the regulator that oversees national banks, has approved Ripple National Trust Bank (RNTB), Ripple’s CEO Brad Garlinghouse announced on X late Monday.

In other words, one of crypto’s biggest players now has a traditional banking-style license, signaling that digital assets are being pulled further into the regulated traditional financial system. Ripple first applied for the banking license in July 2025, and the OCC gave it conditional approval that December before signing off fully this week.

The approval is consistent with Garlinghouse’s long-running pitch that crypto companies should build products that banks and big institutions can actually use.

The RNTB will be tasked with managing the reserves backing Ripple’s RLUSD stablecoin. These reserves are essentially real money and assets that provide the token its value.

The bank will also act as a trustee for these reserves and offer regulated custody services, which means it will safely hold digital assets for big companies as they use crypto in payments, trading, and treasury management.

RLUSD will still be issued by Ripple’s New York-regulated unit, Standard Custody & Trust Company. The new bank adds another layer of oversight: RLUSD now has both state and federal regulators watching over parts of its setup.

5 billion, putting it among the world's top 50 stablecoins. It is used in Ripple’s payments business and as collateral on Ripple Prime.

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