Commodity Futures Trading Commission reissued a staff letter clarifying that national trust banks are permitted to issue payment stablecoins under existing US regulatory guidance.
The updated version of Staff Letter 25-40 said national trust banks were never intended to be excluded and expanded the definition of eligible stablecoin issuers to remove uncertainty.
“The division did not intend to exclude national trust banks as issuers of payment stablecoins for purposes of Letter 25-40,”
The CFTC said in the reissued guidance.
National trust banks are federally chartered institutions focused on custody and asset administration rather than consumer lending, making them central to digital-asset infrastructure.
The clarification aligns with the 2025 GENIUS Act framework, which restricts US stablecoins to fully backed models supported by cash or short-term government securities.
By emphasising backing, redemption and oversight rather than institutional form, regulators are widening the pool of compliant issuers without loosening reserve standards.
The move signals a shift toward a US stablecoin market anchored in regulated banks and custodial firms, narrowing the role of offshore or algorithmic designs.