Stripe-Owned Bridge Gains Conditional OCC Nod to Charter Bank and Issue Stablecoins

Stripe-owned stablecoin infrastructure firm Bridge has taken a significant step toward becoming a federally regulated player in the U.S. stablecoin market: the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) has granted conditional approval for Bridge to form a national trust bank. What the charter would enable - Issue stablecoins under a federally chartered trust bank structure. - Custody digital assets and manage reserve assets with direct federal oversight. - Operate inside a clearer regulatory framework when the charter is finalized. Context and background - Stripe acquired Bridge for $1.1 billion in 2024 as part of a broader push into blockchain-based payments. - Bridge says its systems already meet the compliance expectations in the GENIUS Act (Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins), the law passed last year aimed at creating a U.S. regulatory framework for stablecoin issuers. Regulators (OCC, Federal Reserve, FDIC) are still working through the detailed rules the law requires. - Bridge applied for the charter in October; OCC records show conditional approval was signed off last week. The OCC has not set a timeline for final approval. How Bridge fits into the wider trend - Bridge joins a growing list of firms pursuing federal oversight for stablecoin activity. In recent months, Circle, Ripple, Paxos, Fidelity Digital Assets and BitGo received similar conditional OCC approvals, and Erebor Bank was granted a conditional national bank charter in October. - The approvals reflect an industry shift toward building stablecoin products inside federally supervised institutions rather than offshore or unregulated setups. Products and partners - Bridge currently powers stablecoin issuance for products such as Phantom’s CASH and MetaMask’s mUSD via Stripe’s Open Issuance platform. Bridge’s take “This approval positions Bridge to help enterprises, fintechs, crypto businesses and financial institutions build with digital dollars inside a clear federal framework,” the company said in its press release. Why it matters A conditional OCC charter moves Bridge closer to operating stablecoin issuance, custody and reserve management under U.S. federal oversight—advancing the industry’s transition toward regulated dollars on-chain. Final approval and the ultimate shape of the GENIUS Act’s implementing rules will determine how quickly and broadly these services scale. Read more AI-generated news on: undefined/news