Defining Crypto Banking License: What Exists & How to Choose

Founders searching for a crypto banking license hit a wall. There is no single license with that name. What exists are distinct regulatory structures across jurisdictions, each with different powers, costs, timelines, and banking implications. The sections below map your business model to the structure that fits, then to the banking partners that will actually open an account.

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No such thing as a crypto banking license

The term “crypto banking license” does not appear in any regulator’s rulebook. What founders actually need is a combination: a license that permits their crypto activity, plus a banking partner that will hold fiat deposits and process payments. These are separate conversations.

The actual structures fall into six categories:

1. Full banking charter. Permits deposit-taking, lending, and payment services. In the US this means a national bank charter (OCC) or state charter plus FDIC insurance. In the EU it means a credit institution license under CRR/CRD. In Switzerland it means a FINMA banking license under BankG.
2. Trust charter. The OCC national trust company charter. It allows custody, fiduciary services, staking, and protocol governance. It does not allow demand deposits or commercial lending.
3. Special purpose depository institution. Wyoming SPDI. Full reserve requirement. Qualified institutional buyers only. Fed master account possible but not guaranteed.
4. EMI or payment institution license. EU and UK. Permits e-money issuance and payment services. No deposit-taking. No lending.
5. MiCA CASP authorization. EU. Covers crypto-asset services: custody, trading, execution, transfer, portfolio management. Passports across 30 EEA states.
6. GENIUS Act PPSI paths. US federal law signed July 2025. Creates three categories of payment stablecoin issuers with federal or state oversight. Bank subsidiary path provides an insured depository charter.

Each structure solves a different problem. The license does not get you a bank account. That requires a parallel track.

Also read: How to Make Your Own Cryptocurrency Exchange?

US: the three real paths

a. OCC national trust charter

The OCC has granted preliminary conditional approval to about a dozen applicants since late 2025, including Circle, Ripple, Paxos, BitGo, Fidelity Digital Assets, Bridge, Crypto.com, Coinbase, and World Liberty. Additional 2026 applications include Payward (Kraken), Dakota, Agora, OpenReserve, EDX, Revolut, PAYO, Catena, Bastion, Lorum, and CBW. See the OCC Digital Assets Licensing Applications page for current status.

• Legal basis: 12 USC 92a for fiduciary powers, 12 USC 24(Seventh) for incidental powers. The entity must not meet the Bank Holding Company Act definition of a bank: no demand deposits, no commercial lending.
• Scope: digital asset custody, staking-as-a-service, protocol governance decisions, fork and airdrop handling, treasury management, client-to-client lending in a fiduciary capacity.
• Capital: set case by case in each charter’s conditions. Approved applicants have been required to hold roughly 15 million or more in tier 1 capital, with at least 50 percent (or a fixed floor of $7.5 million for some) in eligible liquid assets.
• Timeline: 12 to 18 months from application to final approval. Final approval requires organizing steps fulfilled, pre-opening examination passed, capital paid, and management fit-and-proper.
• Key limitation: no FDIC insurance, no deposit-taking, no lending on own balance sheet. Banking must come through a partner.

b. Wyoming SPDI

The Wyoming Division of Banking authorized the first SPDI in September 2020, Kraken Financial. Custodia Bank and Avanti Bank followed. See the Wyoming Division of Banking SPDI authorizations.

• Legal basis: Wyoming SPDI Act (2019, amended 2020).
• Structure: 100 percent unencumbered reserves backing all fiat deposits. Reserves held in Fed master account, Treasury securities, or other highly liquid assets.
• Deposits: qualified institutional buyers only. No retail demand deposits.
• Fed master account: Kraken received a limited-purpose master account in March 2026. Custodia’s application was denied in January 2023; litigation continues.
• Capital: $10 million or more realistic.
• Timeline: 6 to 12 months.
• OCC trust charter application: Payward (Kraken) has filed for an OCC national trust charter in addition to its SPDI.

c. GENIUS Act bank subsidiary path

The GENIUS Act (Public Law 119-27) takes effect no later than January 18, 2027. It creates three PPSI categories:

1. Bank subsidiary. An insured depository institution subsidiary approved by the primary federal regulator (OCC, Fed, FDIC, or NCUA). This is the only path that delivers FDIC insurance.
2. Federal qualified issuer. A nonbank, uninsured national bank or federal branch approved by the OCC.
3. State qualified issuer. State-approved, with $10 billion or less in outstanding stablecoins. The state regime must be “substantially similar” to Treasury principles, with SCRC certification.

Issuers exceeding $10 billion move to federal oversight with a 360-day transition or must stop issuing.

Federal-pathway PPSIs are exempt from state money-transmitter licensing. State consumer protection laws are not preempted.

Rulemaking deadline of July 18, 2026 was missed, and zero final rules exist as of August 2026 (the August 18 Federal Register entry is a proposed rule, not final). Licensed activity begins on the January 18, 2027 effective date. Track status via the Federal Register GENIUS Act rulemaking dockets and OCC bulletins.

d. State MTL plus partner bank

Forty-nine states require a money transmitter license (Montana is the exception). FinCEN MSB registration is mandatory.

Model: use a partner bank’s charter for deposit-taking and payments. White-label or banking-as-a-service arrangements.

California DFAL regime took effect July 1, 2026, adding a digital-asset layer on top of MTL.

New York BitLicense plus MTL: 12 to 24 months, $5,000 application fee, $500,000 surety bond typical.

Full 50-state coverage: 12 to 24 months. Most start with 3 to 5 key states.

This is the fastest route to market but depends entirely on the partner bank’s risk appetite.

EU: the dual-license model

a. EMI license plus MiCA CASP

The dominant EU play combines an EMI license under PSD2 with a MiCA CASP authorization.

EMI covers: e-money issuance, credit transfers, direct debits, card acquiring, payment initiation. Regulators include Central Bank of Ireland (Kraken Payward Ireland), CSSF (Swissquote), FCA (UK), Bank of Latvia (Paybis).

MiCA CASP covers: custody, trading, order execution, placing, transfer, portfolio management. Passports across 30 EEA states.

Dual-license model: EMI for fiat and e-money, CASP for crypto. Together they form a full crypto banking stack.

Capital: CASP €50,000 to €150,000 depending on service category. EMI €350,000 base, up to €1.25 million depending on services.

Timeline: 6 to 18 months. Lithuania and Czech Republic average 6 months. Germany and France average 12 to 18 months.

Passporting: one authorization covers all 30 EEA states.

Banking reality: EMI does not guarantee a bank account. Crypto-friendly EMIs and banks include Solaris, Modulr, Paysafe, Fiat Republic. Parallel conversations are essential.

b. Full EU credit institution

ECB SSM supervises eurozone banks. National supervisors handle non-euro countries.

Capital: €5 million minimum initial capital. Practical requirement €10 million to €25 million depending on model.

Timeline: 12 to 24 months. Six-month statutory assessment clock, absolute maximum 12 months from complete application.

Passporting: full EU passport for all banking activities.

The CRD6 third-country branch requirement (Article 21c), affecting non-EU banks serving EU clients, applies from 11 January 2027; most of CRD6 took effect in January 2026.

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Switzerland and Liechtenstein

a. FINMA banking license (BankG)

Minimum capital: CHF 10 million paid-in (Art. 9 BankG, Art. 18 BankV). Realistic viable institution needs CHF 20 million to CHF 50 million.

Requirements: dual control with at least two qualified senior managers. Fit-and-proper directors and shareholders. FINMA-approved auditor. AML/KYC program. IT architecture. Basel III risk-weighted assets.

Timeline: FINMA review 6 to 18 months from complete application. Realistic total 12 to 24 months.

FinTech license alternative (Art. 1b BankG): CHF 300,000 minimum capital plus 3% of public deposits, 6 to 12 months. Permits public deposits up to CHF 100 million provided they are not invested and bear no interest. No lending. FINMA-supervised.

SRO membership (VQF/PolyReg): no FINMA license, no deposit-taking, no lending. Suitable for asset management, forex, advisory. ~3-6 months, lower cost.

Critical constraint: Swiss banks have no EU passporting. To serve EEA clients, a Swiss firm must establish an EU subsidiary or branch.

b. Liechtenstein TVTG to MiCA CASP (EEA gateway)

TVTG (2020): Token and Trusted Technology Service Provider Act. Capital CHF 30,000 to CHF 250,000 by activity (FMA Liechtenstein guidelines).

Physical presence required: office or authorized representative in Liechtenstein.

FMA review leads to CASP authorization under MiCA, which passports across 30 EEA states.

Swiss firms use this as their preferred EU entry: Sygnum, Bitcoin Suisse, RuleMatch, AMINA/SEBA via Austria, Relai via France, SwissBorg via France, Swissquote via Luxembourg (CVJ.CH).

Timeline: 6 to 12 months for TVTG plus MiCA conversion.

What actually gets you a bank account

The license does not get you a bank account. Tier-1 banks frequently decline crypto clients regardless of license. Banking conversations must start in parallel with licensing. Otherwise, the gap runs 3 to 6 months.

Crypto-friendly universe:

• EMI providers. Solaris, Modulr, Paysafe, Fiat Republic
• Specialist banks. SEBA, Sygnum, AMINA, Swissquote, Kraken Financial, Custodia, Avanti, Bank Frick, Vontobel
• PSPs. Circle, Zero Hash (formerly Seed CX), MoonPay, Transak

Substance requirements are real. Regulators visit. A genuine office, local staff, and actual business activity are expected. Shell structures fail.

Related: Brazil’s Central Bank Moves To Connect Pix With Payment Systems Abroad

Timeline and cost reality table

Decision framework

Start with your customers and product. The jurisdiction and license follow.

In every path, the banking partner conversation starts on day one. LegalBison structures the licensing, company formation, compliance program, and banking facilitation as a single project-managed delivery. See our company formation and licensing service scope.

What is the $3,000 rule?

The $3,000 rule is the FinCEN Travel Rule recordkeeping threshold for funds transfers (31 CFR 1010.410), not a currency transaction reporting threshold (which is $10,000 for cash) nor a licensing concept. Obtaining a license depends entirely on your product, customers, and jurisdiction.

Next steps

Map your product to the structure above. Then secure the banking partner. The license application and banking onboarding run in parallel.

Schedule a free consultation to review your jurisdictional strategy. For the new US stablecoin paths, read our GENIUS Act breakdown.

Speak to LegalBison Crypto Licensing Experts