OCC Allows National Banks to Hold Crypto Assets for Fees

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency issued Interpretive Letter 1186 on November 18, 2025, permitting national banks to hold crypto assets as principal on their balance sheets. This guidance allows banks to maintain native assets, such as ETH, to pay blockchain network fees, also known as gas fees, and to facilitate the testing of crypto-asset platforms.

The regulator determined that these activities are incidental to the business of banking and that direct ownership of assets reduces operational and counterparty risks compared to using third-party providers. Banks may also hold assets to serve as validator nodes. To ensure safety and soundness, the agency requires banks to keep these holdings small relative to their capital and implement risk controls to mitigate cyber threats and market volatility.

This shift follows a request from a bank seeking authority to manage network fees internally. Under the leadership of Comptroller Jonathan Gould, the move continues a trend of relaxing digital asset regulations, building upon earlier guidance from former Acting Comptroller Rodney Hood regarding crypto-asset custody services.