At a glance
- The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) has granted final approval for Ripple National Trust Bank, Ripple said on 26 Oct. Conditional approval came in December 2025.
- The bank will manage the segregated reserves behind RLUSD, act as collateral trustee for coin holders and offer custody of digital assets.
- RLUSD will still be issued by Standard Custody & Trust Company, Ripple’s trust company supervised by New York’s Department of Financial Services (NYDFS).
Ripple said the decision completes the organising stage for Ripple National Trust Bank, or RNTB, that began with the conditional nod.
A national trust bank holds and manages assets for clients under federal supervision. Most do not take deposits, make loans or carry deposit insurance, Cointelegraph noted, citing the OCC. Ripple applied in July 2025, CoinDesk reported.
Who holds the money?
RLUSD launched in December 2024 and has a market value of $2.5 billion, according to Ripple. The coin is used in Ripple’s payment services and as collateral at its prime brokerage, Ripple Prime.
BNY is the main custodian of the reserves, which Ripple says are US dollar deposits, US government securities and other cash equivalents. Ripple publishes a monthly attestation from an outside firm on the coin’s supply and reserves.
What changes is the layer above the custodian. RNTB becomes the trustee holding the reserves for RLUSD holders, and it sits under the OCC as well as the existing New York oversight.
“For years, we’ve said crypto and banks work better together. Final approval for Ripple National Trust Bank is what that looks like in practice,” Ripple chief executive Brad Garlinghouse said in the release.
Where it fits
Ripple is one of several crypto firms seeking the same charter. Circle won final OCC approval in July, while Coinbase, Crypto.com and Bridge hold conditional approvals, Cointelegraph reported.
The charters are contested. Community banks have gone to court over them; see the community bankers’ lawsuit against these charters. Stablecoin card firm Rain filed Rain’s own trust bank application this month.
The company plans to keep working with both the OCC and NYDFS as RNTB begins operating and as the US puts the GENIUS Act stablecoin framework in place. It did not give an opening date.
What it changes for users
For RLUSD holders, nothing changes in how the coin is bought or redeemed: the issuer stays the same. The difference is that the reserves backing it will be held by a federally supervised trustee on their behalf.
For institutions, RNTB adds a federally chartered custody option once it opens. For the basics, see what a crypto custodian does.
Related: Aviva Investors’ tokenised fund on the XRP Ledger
Related: Moody's has since rated RLUSD A2 and P-1
This article is for information only and is not investment advice.