Odaily Planet Daily reports that blockchain-native fintech startup OpenReserve received preliminary conditional approval from the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) on September 2 to establish a full-service national bank in Salt Lake City, Utah. The approval process took less than five months, with OpenReserve submitting its application on April 13.
OpenReserve must raise at least $210 million in initial paid-in capital within 12 months and maintain a minimum Tier 1 leverage ratio of 12% for three years after opening; it must also commence operations within 18 months, or the approval will expire. The respective deadlines are September 2027 and March 2028.
OpenReserve plans to offer tokenized deposits, fund management, foreign correspondent banking, and banking-as-a-service for institutional clients. Upon final approval, the full-service national banking license will enable deposit-taking and lending activities.
OpenReserve previously completed a $25 million seed round led by a16z crypto, with participation from Coinbase Ventures, Jump Capital, and Wintermute Ventures. The company plans to establish a wholly owned subsidiary to issue and redeem a dollar-denominated, reserve-backed stablecoin, but the subsidiary has not yet submitted an application to the OCC. (Decrypt)