Cryptocurrency companies are racing to expand into traditional banking in the US, as they seek to capitalise on a friendlier regulatory environment under President Donald Trump and become more embedded in the financial system.
Crypto payments group Ripple, stablecoin company Circle and custodian BitGo have applied for national trust bank charters that will allow them to offer some banking services, while crypto exchange Kraken plans to launch bank cards in the next month.
“It’s a natural convergence,” Arjun Sethi, co-chief executive of Kraken, told the Financial Times, adding the company plans to launch debit and credit cards by roughly the end of the month.