Approved to establish a national trust bank! Circle (CRCL.US) enters the US federal regulatory system, and its stock price soared before the market
The Zhitong Finance App learned that the US Monetary Authority (OCC) officially approved USDC stablecoin issuer Circle Internet Group (CRCL.US) to establish a national trust bank Circle National Trust. Boosted by this news, the stock price of the stock rose 16% during the pre-market trading session on Friday. As of press release, the stock soared 12% before the market.
The approval means that the trust bank will be placed under the OCC's direct federal regulatory framework and is expected to further consolidate the infrastructure supporting USDC through federally regulated digital asset escrow arrangements. The reserve management function is listed as a capability to be expanded in the future.
As a federally regulated national trust bank, Circle National Trust links digital asset infrastructure to the federal trust banking system — the latter has long held customer assets under strict fiduciary standards. The move incorporates the USDC infrastructure into a validated federal banking regulatory framework to ensure safety, robustness, and transparency.
After official operation, Circle National Trust will first provide trust digital asset escrow services for Circle and its affiliates. According to the business plan approved by the OCC, “depending on demand, the National Trust Bank may in the future directly provide digital asset escrow services to a limited number of institutional customers, mainly to banks and other financial institutions, such as regulated derivatives institutions.” The license also reserves room for future expansion of functions such as reserve management — if USDC reserves are subject to federal supervision, it will further enhance the safety, transparency, and trustworthiness of USDC.
Circle's co-founder, chairman and CEO Jeremy Allair said: “The OCC's approval of the Circle National Trust marks a decisive step in integrating blockchain technology and digital assets into the core of the US financial system. The federal regulatory level oversees our trust banks, setting new standards for transparency, governance, and scale for Circle's infrastructure, and starting a new phase of institutional adoption — leading financial institutions will be able to embrace public blockchains based on clarity and confidence.”
The company said in the announcement that as a national trust bank with an OCC license, Circle National Trust will further consolidate USDC's role as a federally regulated trusted digital dollar infrastructure, serve payments, settlement and capital market activities, and support the US dollar's international status in an increasingly digital global economy.
Circle submitted an application to the OCC on June 30, 2025, and received conditional approval in December 2025, continuing its consistent regulatory engagement strategy. In 2015, Circle became the first company to obtain a BitLicense from the New York State Department of Financial Services and continues to cooperate with leading US state-level digital asset regulators.
In 2024, Circle became the first global stablecoin issuer to comply with the European Union's Crypto Asset Market Regulation (MiCA). Additionally, Circle holds licenses in the UK, Singapore, and Bermuda, and has met the requirements related to Canadian value reference crypto assets. In 2025, Circle also obtained a license from the Abu Dhabi Global Markets Financial Services Supervisory Authority.
Internet financial platform company Circle is committed to building the foundation of an open and inclusive economy through digital assets, payment applications, and programmable blockchain infrastructure. The Circle platform covers USDC, the world's largest regulated stablecoin network, Circle Payments Network, and Arc—a blockchain for enterprises — designed to create an “economic operating system” for the Internet. Businesses, financial institutions, and developers use Circle to drive trusted, internet-scale financial innovation.