OpenReserve blockchain bank wins preliminary US charter

TLDR

OpenReserve has received preliminary conditional approval from the US OCC to form a blockchain enabled national bank, but it still must clear strict capital and regulatory hurdles before launching.

1. The OCC granted OpenReserve early approval to organize a full service insured national bank in Utah, subject to raising at least $210 million and meeting tight leverage and timing conditions.
2. The proposed bank would combine insured deposits, lending, tokenized deposits, and digital asset custody, positioning it as a regulated bridge between traditional banking and onchain finance.
3. The charter will only matter for users if OpenReserve secures FDIC insurance, Federal Reserve access, and GENIUS Act compliant stablecoin approvals within 12 to 18 months.

Deep Dive

1. What Was Approved

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency granted OpenReserve preliminary conditional approval to organize a full service national bank headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah, not permission to start banking yet. Reports note that OpenReserve must raise at least $210 million in initial paid in capital and maintain a Tier 1 leverage ratio of at least 12% for its first three years of operation, or the approval can lapse or be withdrawn. The OCC also requires capital to be raised within 12 months and operations to begin within 18 months, alongside FDIC deposit insurance, Federal Reserve Bank stock, and a successful preopening examination focused on governance, compliance, and information security.

2. How A Blockchain Bank Could Matter

OpenReserves plan is to offer insured deposits, commercial and retail lending, treasury management, payments, foreign correspondent banking, and digital asset custody, with deposit products that may include tokenized capabilities and onchain settlement. The OCC letter and coverage highlight that customers could use digital assets, including stablecoins, for cross border payments, while the bank earns fees in crypto that are generally converted back to fiat within one business day. A separate wholly owned subsidiary is envisioned for issuing and handling a US dollar reserve backed stablecoin, which must fully comply with the federal GENIUS Act stablecoin framework once that entity files and is reviewed.

3. Key Milestones And Risks

Before any of this reaches users, OpenReserve must:

1. Complete the $210 million capital raise and meet the 12% leverage requirement.
2. Secure FDIC insurance and Federal Reserve approvals for payment system access.
3. Pass OCC preopening checks, then obtain separate approvals for any stablecoin subsidiary under GENIUS Act rules.

The OCC can modify, suspend, or withdraw the conditional approval if conditions are not met, and there is ongoing political scrutiny of crypto aligned bank charters.

Conclusion

OpenReserves preliminary OCC charter is a notable signal that US regulators are willing to consider full service, blockchain enabled banks, not just narrow trust companies. The decision could eventually expand regulated onchain dollar infrastructure, but nothing is live yet and the hardest work is ahead in capital raising, supervision, and stablecoin approvals. For now, it is an early but important datapoint in the convergence of US banking and crypto rails.