OCC Issues Interpretive Letter Confirming National Banks May Hold Crypto‑Assets and Pay Network Fees

Davis Polk advised a national bank in obtaining guidance from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) concerning the permissibility of certain crypto-asset activities. The OCC issued Interpretive Letter 1186 in response to a request submitted on the bank’s behalf. The letter confirms that a national bank may pay network fees (commonly known as gas fees) on blockchain networks to facilitate otherwise permissible activities. It also confirms that a national bank may hold, as principal on its balance sheet, amounts of crypto-assets necessary to pay network fees for which the bank anticipates a reasonably foreseeable need. In addition, the OCC confirmed that a national bank may hold amounts of crypto-assets as principal that are necessary for testing otherwise permissible crypto-asset-related platforms, whether those platforms are developed internally or acquired from third parties. The OCC Interpretive Letter represents an important step in the banking agencies’ efforts to bring crypto-asset activities within the regulatory perimeter and provides regulatory clarity for banks engaging in specified crypto-asset operations. Davis Polk represented a national bank with a team composed by: partner David L. Portilla; counsel Andrew S. Baer; and associate Justin Levine. Members of the Davis Polk financial institutions team are based in the New York and Washington, D.C. offices.

OCC Issues Interpretive Letter Confirming National Banks May Hold Crypto‑Assets and Pay Network Fees

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