Paxos Seeks National Bank Trust Charter Amid Stablecoin Regulatory Push

Paxos has formally applied for a national bank trust charter with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, positioning itself alongside rivals Circle and Ripple in pursuing federal oversight. The move would convert its existing NYDFS charter into a federally regulated framework, signaling growing institutional commitment to compliance in the $150B+ stablecoin sector.

The issuer behind PayPal's PYUSD and a founding member of the USDG consortium aims to leverage OCC supervision to enhance transparency. "This builds on our historic commitment to safety," said CEO Charles Cascarilla, underscoring the strategic shift toward federal legitimacy.

Regulatory momentum accelerates as Congress recently enacted the GENIUS Act, providing clearer rules for dollar-pegged tokens. The charter pursuit follows Paxos' expired 2021 conditional approval, now revived amid intensifying competition with USDC and RLUSD issuers.