EDX Markets, an institutional cryptocurrency exchange, has submitted an application to the US Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) seeking approval to establish a national trust bank. The proposed institution, to be called EDX Trust, would offer crypto custody, asset management and trade-settlement services. Unlike a traditional depository bank, the entity would operate as a non-depository national bank, keeping custody and settlement functions separate from trading activity.
According to the filing, order matching would continue to flow through EDX’s existing trading platform, while the new trust bank handles the surrounding financial infrastructure. The company states that this separation is designed to reduce structural risks common in crypto markets, where trading, custody and brokerage functions are frequently bundled together within a single platform. That consolidation, EDX argues, creates potential conflicts of interest and single points of failure for clients.
EDX Trust would provide fiduciary asset management services and invest client cash and stablecoin balances in highly liquid assets. The bank would also facilitate trading through a riskless principal model with end-of-day net settlement. Operationally, it would function online from Chicago and focus on institutional clients, including broker-dealers, futures commission merchants and registered investment advisers.
The company says obtaining an OCC-chartered entity would allow it to deliver services across the country under a unified regulatory framework while satisfying custody requirements applicable to regulated financial institutions. Founded in 2022, EDX Markets counts prominent traditional market participants among its backers, including Citadel Securities, Virtu Financial, Fidelity Digital Assets and Hudson River Trading.
The application is part of a broader trend of crypto and financial firms pursuing national trust bank charters to expand institutional offerings under federal supervision. Earlier this month, Zerohash, a blockchain infrastructure company, filed for a similar charter to grow its stablecoin and custody services for banks, brokerages and fintechs. Coinbase submitted its own application in October and is still awaiting a decision, while Laser Digital and Payoneer filed earlier this year to expand custody and stablecoin-related payment services.
Traditional financial institutions are also moving into the space. In February, Morgan Stanley applied for a de novo trust bank charter to support digital asset services through a dedicated separate entity. Meanwhile, the OCC has continued processing applications, issuing conditional licenses last month to Bridge, Stripe and Crypto.com, following approvals granted in December to Ripple Labs, Circle Internet Group, Fidelity Digital Assets, Paxos and BitGo.
The pace of those approvals has attracted criticism from parts of the banking industry. In February, the American Bankers Association called on the OCC to slow its review process, pointing to unresolved oversight questions tied to pending US stablecoin legislation. The concerns reflect ongoing debate about how quickly federal regulators should extend formal charters to crypto-focused entities before a comprehensive legislative framework is in place.
Originally reported by CoinTelegraph.
