Key Notes
- Ripple announced final approval for its national trust bank after receiving conditional approval in December 2025.
- RLUSD issuance remains with Standard Custody & Trust Company under New York supervision.
- A national trust charter is distinct from the approval of a full-service, insured retail bank.
Ripple says it has secured final US approval for Ripple National Trust Bank, completing a chartering process that began with conditional approval in December 2025.
The company’s October 26 announcement describes a federally supervised institution handling RLUSD reserves, collateral-trustee duties for holders and fiduciary digital-asset custody.
View Brad Garlinghouse’s final-approval announcement
— Brad Garlinghouse (@bgarlinghouse) October 26, 2026
RLUSD’s Issuer Stays in New York
RLUSD will still be issued by Standard Custody & Trust Company under New York supervision.
That separation was already central to the OCC’s December 12, 2025 decision letter. The regulator described the proposed trust bank as managing a segregated pool of liquid assets backing the stablecoin and serving as trustee for its holders, while a different Ripple subsidiary issued the tokens.
The original plan also covered cryptocurrency custody for affiliated and unaffiliated institutional customers. In a fiduciary service, an institution holds or administers assets on behalf of others under duties attached to that role.
Those activities connect the stablecoin’s backing assets with institutional safekeeping. They remain distinct from issuing a token or operating a conventional consumer bank.
Final Approval Follows a Conditional Charter
The December letter explicitly said its preliminary approval did not authorize the proposed bank to open. Capital, governance, security and other pre-opening requirements had to be satisfied before the OCC could give its final authorization.
Ripple’s new release does not specify a separate opening date.
The OCC’s guidance describes national trust banks as institutions focused primarily on fiduciary and related services. Most do not accept deposits, offer loans or carry Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation insurance.
That narrower business model is important when interpreting the word “bank.” The charter should not be read as an announcement of insured retail checking accounts. The regulator’s original Ripple decision specifically described the proposed institution as uninsured.
A New Role Alongside Existing Institutional Services
CoinScreamer’s earlier custody coverage examined Standard Chartered’s RLUSD safekeeping service on XRP Ledger. Custody of a client’s stablecoin tokens is a different responsibility from managing the reserve portfolio that backs the token’s value.
Ripple also introduced expanded treasury capabilities on October 26, including AI-assisted cash-management workflows and a qualified returns program. That product announcement and the trust-bank charter are separate developments within its institutional business.
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