Kraken's parent company applies for a national trust company charter from the OCC.

Techub News, according to CoinDesk, Payward (parent company of Kraken) has applied to the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) for a national trust charter, proposing to establish Payward National Trust Company (PNTC) to provide federally regulated digital asset custody services, primarily for institutional clients. Arjun Sethi, co-CEO of Payward and Kraken, stated that a national trust company can provide certainty for institutions and build next-generation custody infrastructure. The application is part of Payward's "multi-charter" strategy, complementing its Wyoming SPDI bank charter obtained in 2020 and its Federal Reserve master account. The company has recently expanded its regulated trading and payment infrastructure through acquisitions of NinjaTrader, Bitnomial, and Reap Technologies, preparing for a potential IPO.