The news: Stripe’s stablecoin platform Bridge won a conditional approval from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency to create a federally chartered national trust bank. 

A charter will help legitimize Bridge as a financial services provider and let it bypass the patchwork of state money-transmitter rules. If approved, Bridge will be able to offer businesses custodial services for tokens, issue and manage stablecoins, and supervise the reserves backing digital assets.

Zoom out: After the GENIUS Act’s passage clarified legal standards for stablecoin payments, major crypto players rushed to apply for federal trust charters. Bridge is just the latest: Ripple received conditional approval in January for a trust charter, following Circle, BitGo, Fidelity Digital Assets, and Paxos. Crypto.com and Coinbase have applications pending.

Why it’s worth watching: Stripe has invested heavily to scale its crypto infrastructure. Its $1.1 billion purchase of Bridge in October 2024 was Stripe’s biggest-ever acquisition—and the largest crypto acquisition made by any payments company to date. Since then, Stripe has chased its stablecoin ambitions with strategic partnerships:

• Last May it deepened its partnership with Ramp, which issues a stablecoin-backed corporate card that can pay out in fiat.
• It’s developing its own blockchain called Tempo with crypto VC Paradigm, which would give Stripe full control over its stablecoin tech stack.

What this means for payment providers: Stablecoins are inching closer to becoming banking's next payment rails. While cross-border payments remain traditional banks’ largest stablecoin opportunity, issuers should consider loyalty-style stablecoin rewards to entice more consumers into utilizing crypto-backed financial products and services.