Trump orders Fed to decide crypto payment access in 120 days

President Donald Trump signed an executive order on May 19 directing the Federal Reserve to complete a review within 120 days on whether non-bank firms, including cryptocurrency companies and uninsured depositories, should be allowed to use Reserve Bank payment services.

The order instructs the Federal Reserve Board to publish clear application procedures where existing law permits expanded access and to issue final decisions on complete applications within 90 days. It asks the Fed to evaluate whether individual Federal Reserve Banks can approve applications on their own.

The directive was issued alongside a broader effort requiring six federal financial regulators-the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and the National Credit Union Administration-to review rules, guidance, supervisory practices and application processes that limit fintech entry.

Those agencies must identify regulatory or supervisory changes within 90 days and act on findings within 180 days in coordination with the White House assistant for economic policy. Reviews are to consider obstacles to obtaining bank charters, credit union charters and deposit insurance for eligible fintech companies, while taking safety, soundness, consumer protection and market integrity into account.

The question of whether individual Reserve Banks can grant account access echoes prior disputes over master accounts for crypto-focused banks. Custodia Bank founder Caitlin Long welcomed the directive and has argued the Fed blocked institutions she viewed as legally eligible; Custodia lost a 2023 court case seeking a master account.

Earlier this year Kraken became the first crypto firm to connect directly to the Federal Reserve. Other companies, including Ripple, remain in the application pipeline.

Federal Reserve master accounts and Reserve Bank payment services have historically been available mainly to banks and certain insured depositories. Regulators now face legal and procedural questions about eligibility and operational processes, and the reviews and any subsequent rule changes will determine how access may expand.