BitGo converts trust unit into national bank following OCC approval

BitGo Holdings, Inc. announced that the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) has approved its application to convert BitGo Trust Company, Inc., a South Dakota-chartered trust company, into a national bank.

Following the approval, the subsidiary is now operating as BitGo Bank & Trust, National Association (N.A.).

As a national bank, BitGo Bank & Trust, N.A. will operate under a single federal supervisory framework, providing institutions with greater regulatory clarity, governance, and consistency.

The approval strengthens BitGo’s role as a core infrastructure provider for institutional digital assets, combining federal bank-level oversight with its existing focus on security, compliance, and scalable financial infrastructure.

“This approval represents a landmark step in building the financial infrastructure of the future,” said Mike Belshe, CEO and Co-Founder.

“By becoming a federally chartered digital asset trust bank in the United States, BitGo is setting the new standard for transparency, security, and regulatory clarity across the evolving landscape of financial services.”

Under its national bank charter, and subject to applicable laws and OCC requirements, BitGo Bank & Trust, N.A. is authorised to provide custody and safekeeping services for digital assets and certain non-deposit financial assets under federal fiduciary and non-fiduciary authorities.

The charter also allows the bank to deliver select digital asset–related services nationwide, without the need for state-by-state licensing where federal law preempts overlapping requirements.

All activities of BitGo Bank & Trust, N.A. are governed by enhanced federal standards for governance, compliance, and risk management that apply to national trust banks.

“BitGo’s conversion to a federal bank charter is more than a milestone – it’s a signal of maturity for the entire digital asset ecosystem,” said Brian Brooks, Board Member at BitGo Holdings, Inc.

“For over a decade, BitGo has led with security, compliance, and innovation. This next step places the company at the center of how digital assets integrate into the regulated financial system.”

A rare combination of US and EU regulatory oversight

The OCC charter adds to BitGo’s existing portfolio of licenses and registrations worldwide, further strengthening its regulatory foundation.

In Europe, BitGo Europe GmbH operates under the supervision of BaFin, one of the world’s most stringent regulators for custody and financial services.

BitGo is also authorised under MiCA, which standardises digital asset regulation across the European Union to an institutional-grade level, with some of the toughest requirements globally for safeguarding, governance, capital, and operational resilience.

Collectively, BitGo is now governed by a rare combination of US federal banking oversight and leading international regulatory frameworks, including BaFin, MiCA, MAS, and VARA, placing it among the most comprehensively regulated players in the digital asset ecosystem.

This structure improves BitGo’s ability to provide secure, compliant infrastructure at scale, supported by ongoing audits, comprehensive regulatory oversight, strict capital requirements, up to $250 million in insurance coverage for assets held in qualified custody, and institutional-grade operational controls across custody, liquidity, and settlement.

BitGo’s platform already supports trading, custody, staking, stablecoins, and treasury services for institutions globally.

Operating as a federally chartered digital asset bank is expected to further enhance and scale these core offerings, reinforcing BitGo’s focus on delivering trusted, compliant, and scalable infrastructure to institutional clients worldwide.

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