Ripple has applied for a master account with the Federal Reserve as well as a national bank charter with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC). This is a bold step by the company in order to strengthen its position in the U.S. financial system. Thanks to this, the firm is now perfectly positioned for deeper integration into traditional banking infrastructure and tighter federal regulatory oversight.

Brad Garlinghouse, CEO of Ripple, confirmed that the application in a post on X.com. He shared how the firm is pursuing the charter to support its plans to expand its stablecoin initiatives. The company is interested in boosting its U.S. dollar-pegged RLUSD token that was launched back in December of 2024.

Ripple Applies for National Banking Charter

Ripple is currently regulated by the New York Department of Financial Services (NYDFS). Shifting the national charter would allow the firm to have dual oversight from federal agencies and the state. Once approved, the charter will make it possible for Ripple to operate under a more centralized and uniform regulatory framework. This will help the company become more than a crypto-native entity.

A key component of this regulatory expansion is Ripple’s application for a Federal Reserve master account, which was submitted through its custody subsidiary, Standard Custody. If they get access to a Federal Reserve account, the company will be able to hold reserves for RLUSD directly with the central bank. This will improve its security and efficiency of its settlement infrastructure as well as remove reliance on intermediary banks.

This kind of access is rare for crypto companies, but it would transform the game. It would let Ripple connect directly to the Fed’s payment system, which would make it easier to get money, lower counterparty risk, and make investors more confident in RLUSD. DefiLlama says that RLUSD has grown steadily and now has a market cap of about $470 million, even though it is still behind big players like Tether’s USDT and Circle’s USDC.

The move comes as the GENIUS Act, a federal bill that the Senate enacted in May, gets ready to be put into effect. The bill requires stablecoin issuers to be clear about their rules. The Act gives the OCC the job of keeping an eye on large dollar-pegged tokens. This has led companies like Ripple and Circle to look for charters in case they need to follow the rules.
Circle recently sought to start a national trust bank. This shows that other large stablecoin players are using the same technique to keep up with changing government rules.

The market has reacted positively to Ripple’s news. XRP, Ripple’s own cryptocurrency, rose 4% in the last 24 hours, and trade volume rose 38% to $3.65 billion. According to Coinglass statistics, the derivatives markets were also optimistic. Open interest on XRP futures surged by 8% to $4.5 billion, while daily volume rose by 29% to $7.38 billion.

Ripple’s quest for regulation is considered as a big step towards bringing crypto and traditional finance closer together. If it works, the national charter and Fed access might set a standard for how blockchain companies work and are regulated in the U.S. financial system.

Ripple’s proactive approach could provide it with an edge in the stablecoin market and help its long-term institutional credibility as regulatory scrutiny grows.

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