CoinDesk
Zerohash has refiled for a U.S. national trust bank charter at the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, weeks after the regulator returned its first application over material deficiencies. The Chicago-based crypto infrastructure firm said the new effort would be "significantly narrower," focused on a subset of national trust activities aligned with its rollout timeline. Zerohash already operates as a state-chartered trust bank and provides crypto infrastructure for Morgan Stanley's E*Trade, BlackRock, Stripe, Franklin Templeton, Interactive Brokers and DraftKings.
Why it matters
Zerohash's first application is the only one among recent crypto trust charter bids to be returned rather than preliminarily approved or formally denied. A return signals the OCC found material deficiencies the firm could address without an outright rejection, but the narrower reapplication also tells the rest of the industry what the regulator was uncomfortable with in the original scope. The public comment period runs through September 17, and the new file will set a working bar for how ambitious a crypto-native trust bank application can be at the OCC.
Market impact
Zerohash sits in the middle of an institutional crypto infrastructure stack, providing custody, settlement, and stablecoin reserve rails that its marquee partners depend on for their own crypto offerings. A prolonged OCC delay means those partners keep routing through the existing state-chartered trust bank while watching whether the federal regulator is tightening the bar for crypto-native applicants. A wrongful-termination suit from a former chief compliance officer alleging he was fired after flagging compliance problems adds an extra layer of scrutiny examiners will read as they review the refiled file.
Frequently asked questions
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Why was Zerohash's first OCC trust bank application returned?
The OCC returned Zerohash's first national trust bank application last month over material deficiencies, without formally approving or denying it. Zerohash said the move was handled in coordination with the regulator and was not a substantive decision on the merits.
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What changed in Zerohash's second charter application?
Zerohash said the new application is significantly narrower, focused on a more limited set of national trust activities aligned with its rollout timeline. The firm framed it as a more focused approval request rather than a full-scale trust bank bid.
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Who are Zerohash's crypto infrastructure partners?
Zerohash provides crypto infrastructure for Morgan Stanley's E*Trade, BlackRock, Stripe, Franklin Templeton, Interactive Brokers and DraftKings. The firm already operates as a state-chartered trust bank in Illinois.
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When does the OCC's public comment period close?
The public comment period on Zerohash's new application runs through September 17, after which the OCC will continue its review of the refiled file.
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What other legal issues is Zerohash facing?
A former Zerohash chief compliance officer has filed a wrongful termination suit in California alleging he was fired after flagging compliance problems. That case runs in parallel to the OCC review.
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