The Seattle-based crypto handler Protego is now the second digital asset financial institution to receive conditional approval for a federal bank charter.
The Protego Trust Company is being reorganized into Protego Bank Trust N.A., and is set to launch later this year; it will extend custody, trading, and lending services to customers in all 50 states.
Said Protego executive Chris Hunter, “The demand from institutional investors for secure and compliant access to digital assets - led by Bitcoin - is growing everyday. I think that’s one reason why we have already secured commitments for more than $1.5 billion in AUC [assets under custody] at launch.”
The crypto firm Anchorage won the first-ever federal charter for a digital asset bank last month.
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), which issues these charters, is currently in a transitionary period—it lost its Trump-appointed, crypto-friendly head last month, and is now being overseen by Blake Paulson.
President Biden is expected to appoint another potential crypto advocate, Michael Barr, as the new comptroller.