Morgan Stanley has applied to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) for a national trust bank charter, creating a new standalone entity called Morgan Stanley Digital Trust, National Association (MSDTNA). The application was received by the OCC on February 18 and a public comment period runs until March 20.
The filing comes as the OCC under Comptroller Jonathan Gould has moved at pace to process digital asset charter applications. In December 2025 the agency granted conditional approval to five applicants: Circle’s First National Digital Currency Bank, Ripple National Trust Bank, BitGo, Fidelity Digital Assets and Paxos Trust Company. Three further conditional approvals followed in early 2026 for Stripe’s Bridge National Trust Bank, Crypto.com and Protego. Applications from Coinbase and Trump-linked World Liberty Financial and others remain pending.
The filing also reflects Morgan Stanley’s broader acceleration into digital assets. The firm appointed Amy Oldenburg as head of digital asset strategy in January 2026, filed registrations for spot Bitcoin, Ethereum and Solana ETFs and plans to launch direct spot crypto trading for E*Trade clients in the first half of this year through a partnership with Zero Hash.
Unlike most of the earlier applicants, Morgan Stanley already holds two full national bank charters. That raises an obvious question: why structure this as a separate legal entity at all?
Article continues …
Want the full story? Pro subscribers get complete articles, exclusive industry analysis, and early access to legislative updates that keep you ahead of the competition. Join the professionals who are choosing deeper insights over surface level news.
