Nomura-backed crypto firm Laser Digital has applied for a U.S. national banking trust license, signaling deeper institutional integration.
Jan 30, 2026
Laser Digital, a digital asset company backed by the Japanese financial giant, Nomura Group , has filed an application with the U.S. Office of Comptroller of the currency to build a federally regulated banking entity in the U.S. with their focus being digital assets. The application, filed January 27, 2026, is for a national trust bank charter – a form of federal banking license that would enable the company to operate across the entire country without needing to acquire a different custody license in each state.
If approved, the proposed establishment — to be named Laser Digital National Trust Bank – would deliver institutional custody of digital assets as well as integrated spot trading services and the staking of eligible assets, it would likewise allow custody of U.S. government securities, but it would not allow it to take retail deposits or trade in traditional securities.
Laser Digital's new approach is an attempt to integrate its crypto infrastructure into a regulated financial environment with institutional – level regulations – making it more competitive in serving large institutional clients and implementing digital finance with legacy financial systems.
Institutional digital assets markets are moving into “a new phase of the economy in which scale, regulation, and durability continue to dominate.” said Steve Ashley, co-founder and proposed chairman of the trust bank. Purvi Maniar, chief legal officer and proposed president said: "OCC's national trust bank structures align well with institutions' approach to custody, trading, and fiduciary risk.”
The OCC’s charter approval usually involves having an initial decision in several months and a final review based upon capital strength and preparedness to operate, which may take a year or longer. Rising interest in federal trust charters – Laser Digital's filing comes after a surge of similar applications from crypto and FinTech companies. The OCC has recently taken notice of interest in trust and bank charters – an indication of what industry analysts say is a more lenient regulation from the current administration. Several other digital asset companies such as Ripple, Circle, Paxos, BitGo, and Fidelity Digital Assets have pursued or received conditional trust charters as well – and non-bank players including FinTechs and industrial players, like Ford or GM, have also taken up the banking licensing game.
Advocates for such federal charters say that they integrate digital assets into the regulated financial system, reduce system fragmentation and create clearer oversight for institutional investors. But traditional banks and industry associations have raised fears that crypto companies would tap into bank charters; sounding fears that they may breach protections they already have in place and undermine the stability of the financial systems.
The Laser Digital firm – which was established in Zurich in 2022 and holds a license in Europe and the Middle East – reflects a wave of international financial interest in trying to develop a regulated presence in the lucrative U.S. digital sector.
The filing also comes as federal regulators appear under increasing pressure to clarify how digital asset firms fit into the U.S. banking framework.
While the OCC has a tradition of issuing trust bank charters to firms engaged in custody and fiduciary services, crypto-savvy applicants have pushed the ability of that authority to a breaking point in recent years. Following a string of high-profile industry collapses, including the failures of FTX and several crypto-friendly banks in 2023, the agency paused approvals for the better part of a handful of years.
Industry analysts say the resurgence in applications indicates regulators may be prepared, although not entirely, to return to existing digital assets ecosystems with an emphasis not on customer-facing crypto products, but rather custody controls and compliance. National trusts in particular are considered charters, a middle ground: they offer federal oversight and scale of operation without allowing insured retail deposits, the group said.
Laser Digital’s application also illustrates how traditional financial companies are increasingly influential in determining the next stage in the development of the crypto market. Underwritten by Nomura, one of Japan’s largest investment banks, the company has the balance-sheet strength and risk-management expertise that regulators have repeatedly cited as necessary conditions for institutional adoption of digital assets.
Legacy-bank sponsorship also could provide Laser Digital with an edge over smaller crypto-native providers seeking similar approvals, analysts say.
Still, opposition remains. U.S. banking trade groups have said that authorizing federal charters for crypto firms could open regulatory “cracks” for banking groups, providing an opportunity for companies to conduct bank-like behavior without exposure to the prudential requirements typical for traditional banks.
In public comment letters to the OCC, industry associations in the past have noted that an extended application of trust charters to digital asset companies could weaken the distinction between regulated banking and speculative markets.
Supporters respond that denying such charters would push digital asset activity deeper into siloed state-level or offshore regulations, further driving it into fragmented state-level and offshore jurisdictions, and heightening systemic risk rather than mitigating it. A federally chartered trust bank, they maintain, allows regulators to exercise more transparency, examination power and enforcement muscle into a fast-changing sector.
If cleared, Laser Digital National Trust Bank would add to the small but vibrant cadre of federally supervised digital asset custodians around the country, further solidifying the United States’ position as a main theater of global crypto regulation. The results of the application could also affect how other international financial institutions will enter the U.S. market — especially those desiring to connect traditional capital markets with blockchain-based infrastructure.
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