The issuer of the USDC stablecoin is set to launch its own trust bank. Shares surged

Shares of Circle, the issuer of the second-largest stablecoin, USDC, surged by nearly 16% at their intraday high on July 10. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC)—a regulatory agency under the U.S. Department of the Treasury— has approved its operations as a trust bank.

The new entity will operate under the name Circle National Trust and will allow the company to directly manage the reserves for its regulated stablecoins—primarily USDC, which has more than $73 billion in circulation. Previously, Circle had to rely on third-party banks and custodians to hold the cash and treasury assets backing USDC, CNBC explains.

However, the license Circle has received does not allow it to accept deposits or issue loans, as commercial banks do. Nevertheless, the mere fact that the company has such approval from the OCC confirms its appeal “as a regulated infrastructure” for institutional clients, according to CNBC.

At their peak following this news, Circle shares surged to $72.86 each on July 10, but then slowed their rise slightly; as of this writing, they are up about 8% and trading at $68.2.

This article is being updated

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