OCC Grants Catena Preliminary Approval for AI-Focused National Trust Bank
OCC approves Catena Trust Bank application
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency granted Catena Labs preliminary conditional approval on September 18, 2026, to organize Catena Trust Bank, N.A. The decision moves the company from applicant to bank organizer, but does not yet authorize the proposed bank to open for business. The proposed institution would be a wholly owned subsidiary of Catena Labs based in New York.
Catena says the proposed bank is designed for businesses that deploy AI agents. The company describes controls that would let businesses give agents authority to transact while keeping control of their money.
Capital and operational requirements
Final approval depends on Catena meeting preopening conditions set by the OCC. The company must hold at least $10 million of tier 1 capital. The greater of half that capital or $5 million must be held in eligible liquid assets, and the bank must separately maintain 180 days of operating expenses in eligible liquid assets during its first three years of operation.
Catena must also give the OCC at least 60 days' notice before making significant changes to its business plan and receive written confirmation of no objection. This requirement applies during the organizing period and the first three years after opening.
Services and stablecoin conditions
The planned services include custody, investment management, trust, conversion, clearing and execution for fiat currencies, securities and digital assets. This includes payment stablecoins that comply with the GENIUS Act once that legislation takes effect.
Investment management and trust services would be provided in a fiduciary capacity. Custody could be offered with or without fiduciary duty, while conversion, clearing and execution would be non-fiduciary services connected to assets held through the bank's custody, trust and investment management businesses.
The OCC order includes a separate condition requiring Catena to conform, cease or divest activities if needed to comply with the GENIUS Act, its implementing regulations, and other applicable laws that take effect in the future. The order clarifies that payment stablecoins are not deposits under the Federal Deposit Insurance Act and may not be represented as federally insured.
Part of wider trust-bank activity
The Catena approval follows a series of OCC decisions involving digital asset-focused institutions. The OCC order cites preliminary approvals for Foris DAX and Bridge in 2026 and for Ripple and First National Digital Currency Bank in December 2025, as well as a conditional approval involving BitGo.
As of March 31, OCC-supervised uninsured national trust banks reported $7.7 trillion in assets under administration, including $2.1 trillion in custody and safekeeping accounts and $5.6 trillion in fiduciary accounts.
What comes next
Before requesting a preopening examination, Catena must complete Bank Secrecy Act and sanctions compliance policies, arrange an independent external audit, secure adequate fidelity-bond coverage and satisfy governance and management requirements. The OCC will not grant final charter approval until all preopening conditions are met.
The regulator said it may modify, suspend or rescind the preliminary approval before the bank opens if an interim development warrants action.
Sources
Newisty Editorial Team covers technology, cryptocurrency, digital products, online platforms, developer tools and the wider digital economy. Our content is researched from official sources, company announcements, public documentation, market data and other primary or reputable sources. Articles are reviewed and edited before publication for clarity, accuracy and useful context.