Top-read fintech charter stories of 2025

The line between fintechs and banks continued to blur in 2025 as fintech companies acquired or applied for bank charters in various forms this year. From acquiring banks with existing charters to applying for de novo charters under the new administration, technology companies are increasingly inserting themselves into the market of traditional financial institutions in the U.S.

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Here are the most-read stories regarding fintechs and bank charters in 2025:

Why fintechs are buying up banks

Fintechs looking to gain the benefits of bank charters are starting to acquire them again by buying up banks.

After several years of almost no fintech/bank M&A activity under the Biden administration, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency approved a deal for SmartBiz Loans to buy Detroit-based Centrust Bank, acquire the community bank’s national OCC-granted charter and change its name to SmartBiz Bank.

New, or “de novo,” bank charter applications have been historically difficult for fintechs to acquire, with none receiving approval under President Joe Biden and Varo being one of the few to successfully obtain a de novo bank charter as a fintech before that.

Read more about why fintechs are buying up banks here.

Coinbase applies for crypto trust charter; OCC gives conditional approval to five crypto companies

Stefan Wermuth/Bloomberg

As Coinbase becomes the latest digital asset firm to vie for a national trust charter from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, traditional banks are urging regulators to carefully consider the ramifications of approving such charters, which they generally oppose.

Coinbase’s Oct. 3 filing marks the latest instance in a growing wave of crypto-related trust charter applications, joining Circle, Ripple, and Paxos. Anchorage Digital remains the only crypto firm to have received OCC approval for a national trust bank, granted in January 2021 during the Trump administration’s first term.

Coinbase, the largest U.S.-based digital-currency exchange, says it hopes the charter, if granted, would enable them to expand offerings to customers, but that they do not aim to be a bank.

On Dec. 12 of this year, the OCC conditionally approved charter applications granting national trust banking charters to the digital-asset arms of First National Digital Currency Bank, Ripple National Trust Bank, BitGo Bank & Trust, Fidelity Digital Assets and Paxos Trust Company.

Read more about crypto charter applications here and the OCC approvals here.

PayPal eyes industrial loan charter

Dhiraj Singh/Bloomberg

PayPal wants to be a bank, too. 

The payments company on Monday submitted applications to the Utah Department of Financial Institutions and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation for an industrial loan charter to create PayPal Bank. 

The charter will make it easier for PayPal to lend to businesses, the company said. PayPal has originated more than $30 million in loans to more than 420,000 businesses across the globe since 2013.  

“Securing capital remains a significant hurdle for small businesses striving to grow and scale,” said Alex Chriss, president and CEO of PayPal, in a statement. 

Read more about PayPal’s charter application here.

Circle applies for national trust charter

Bryan van der Beek/Bloomberg

Circle’s attempt to obtain a bank charter is likely not a direct assault on banks, but it does threaten traditional financial institutions in more subtle ways. 

“If Circle gets a charter, it reinforces the idea that stablecoins aren’t just crypto products, they’re becoming integrated into the broader financial system,” James Wester, head of cryptocurrency research at Javelin Strategy & Research, told American Banker. “Banks that haven’t thought seriously about tokenized money need to start.”

Circle, which issues USDC, the second largest stablecoin after Tether, plans to apply for a national trust bank charter. A national trust bank charter allows companies to offer custodial services under the regulatory scope of the OCC instead of a patchwork of state money transmitter licenses. The custodial service would additionally include representation of stocks and bonds on a blockchain network.

Read more about Circle’s charter application here.

OCC and FDIC conditionally approve Erebor Bank charter application

Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation approved a deposit insurance application in December for Erebor Bank, a de novo national bank founded by Palmer Luckey, founder of Oculus VR and Anduril Industries, and funded by Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund and Joe Lonsdale’s 8VC.

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency gave Erebor’s organizers conditional approval for a national bank charter in October.

Erebor still awaits its full charter, which it’s likely to receive in 2026. 

The bank, which will be headquartered in Columbus, Ohio, plans to provide deposit and lending products to businesses and individuals in the technology, payment systems, investment and defense industries, including virtual currency market participants. It also plans to mint and burn stablecoins and lend against virtual currencies.

Read more about the Erebor charter process here and here.

Nubank applies for U.S. bank charter

Bloomberg

Nubank is setting its sights on the U.S. digital banking market.

The Brazilian neobank announced on Tuesday that it has filed for a U.S. national bank charter with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. The move underscores the bank’s strategy to “explore future international opportunities by evolving its regional platform into a global model,” according to a company press release.

A national bank charter from the OCC would enable Nubank to scale in the U.S. market, eventually offering deposit accounts, credit cards, loans and digital asset custody, according to the company.

Read more about Nubank’s charter application here.