The Digital Chamber on Tuesday challenged Senator Elizabeth Warren’s claim that the Comptroller of the Currency violated the National Bank Act by approving national trust charters for nine crypto and financial services companies.
Warren, the Massachusetts senator and ranking member of the US Senate Banking Committee, sent a letter to the OCC on May 18 alleging the regulator exceeded its authority. She argued the approved companies “intend to engage in activities that appear to go far beyond the narrow set of activities permitted by law” and questioned what led to the approvals, implying White House influence.
In her letter, Warren claimed the companies “want to evade the fundamental safeguards and obligations that come with being a bank.”
The nine approved or conditionally approved charter applicants include Coinbase, Crypto.com, Ripple, Stripe, BitGo, Circle, Fidelity Digital Assets, Protego Holdings, and Paxos. An additional five digital asset companies, including Payward (parent company of Kraken) and World Liberty Financial (a Trump family-backed crypto business), have pending applications with the OCC, bringing the total number of applicants to 14 as of Tuesday.
Cody Carbone, CEO of The Digital Chamber, directly disputed Warren’s framing. “The claim that these firms seek to ‘evade’ regulations or pose risks to the safety and soundness of the banking system is contradicted by their own conduct,” Carbone said. “These companies voluntarily sought federal oversight: each applied for a national trust bank charter, submitted to OCC examination authority, and accepted the compliance obligations that come with federal supervision.”
Carbone rejected the suggestion that the OCC acted improperly under political pressure. “If Senator Warren believes the OCC exceeded its authority, the appropriate response is to identify where the statute draws the line she says was crossed. We’d welcome that debate,” he said. “But ‘this seems wrong’ from a member of the Banking Committee isn’t a legal argument. And the OCC shouldn’t retreat from a legally sound decision because of political pressure, regardless of who’s applying it.”
Warren has previously criticized lawmakers and regulators for supporting policies with potential conflicts of interest related to Trump’s ties to the crypto industry. In January, she called on OCC Comptroller Jonathan Gould to delay World Liberty Financial’s application, citing financial conflicts of interest tied to Trump’s involvement.
Payward stated it intended to “provide fiduciary custody and other services primarily for digital assets” if approved, according to the company’s application materials.
The dispute reflects broader tension over how federal banking regulators should oversee crypto companies seeking traditional banking infrastructure. Warren’s letter did not specify the exact statutory language or legal basis she cites for her violation claim, and the OCC has not yet formally responded to her allegations. [Source] did not provide Warren’s office response or comment on Carbone’s rebuttal.
