BitPay Has Applied For U.S. National Bank Status

BitPay has filed to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) to become a federally regulated bank under the name BitPay National Trust Bank, according to a December 8 official notice in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. The headquarters will be located in Georgia.

The filing contains a 30-day period for comments to be sent to the Director of Licensing OCC. Acting OCC Controller Brian BROOKS announced earlier this year that he will seek to create a licensing system for fintech startups, including crypto firms, to streamline their U.S. operations. As a reminder, BitPay is not the only firm that has taken a step towards becoming a cryptobank. For example, Kraken became the first cryptocurrency exchange to receive a bank charter this September.

According to the BitPay filing, the total capitalization that the national bank will receive for the issued shares will fall to just under $12 mln, with 120 mln shares being issued.

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