Circle secures NYDFS trust charter, adding state layer to federal USDC oversight

Circle (CRCL) has received a limited-purpose trust charter from the New York Department of Financial Services for Circle Internet Trust Company LLC, doing business as Circle New York Trust, the company said Friday.

The charter further solidifies a regulatory foundation for Circle and its (USDC) stablecoin in the state, which the company calls its global headquarters. It arrives weeks after Circle secured final approval from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency to establish a national trust bank, as The Block reported.

Federal and state approvals

It’s important to note that the two approvals sit at different levels of the U.S. system.

The OCC clearance, granted on July 10, established First National Digital Currency Bank, N.A., operating as Circle National Trust, under federal oversight for fiduciary custody of digital assets. Notably, management of the USDC reserve, which forms the original aim of Circle's application, is deferred to a later phase.

Meanwhile, the New York charter is a state-level license, and Circle's earlier federal coverage also indicated that USDC issuance would route through a New York limited-purpose trust company rather than a national bank.

Circle was the first company to receive a BitLicense from NYDFS in 2015, beginning a relationship with the agency that now spans more than a decade.

"Earning a New York trust charter has been a longstanding objective for Circle given the regulatory clarity that comes with it," said Jeremy Allaire, co-founder, chairman and chief executive of Circle.

Allaire added that the NYDFS is an international standard setter for digital asset regulation and that the charter positions USDC within a respected framework as digital dollars move toward the center of the global financial system.

Circle operates the largest regulated stablecoin network anchored by USDC, alongside its Circle Payments Network and the Arc blockchain. Per The Block’s data, USDC ranks as the second-largest dollar-pegged stablecoin in a list topped by Tether’s (USDT).