Custodia Bank Loses Final Fed Appeal as Kraken Secures Master Account
A federal appeals court delivered a fatal blow to Custodia Bank's three-year battle for Federal Reserve access, rejecting its rehearing request in a 7-3 vote. The Wyoming-based crypto bank's denial contrasts sharply with Kraken's landmark approval for a limited master account on March 4—marking the first such concession to a digital asset firm.
The dissenting opinion framed the Fed's rejection as existential for Custodia, calling it "akin to a death sentence" for the institution. Meanwhile, regulators appear to be crafting a narrower pathway for crypto firms, with the Kansas City Fed developing a "skinny" master account framework that could reshape industry access.