OCC Greenlights Bank Stablecoins: Opens TAM of ~200B Annual Public Blockchain Transactions = Good For Crypto

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Yesterday afternoon, the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) issued interpretive guidance clarifying that federally chartered banks may participate in independent node verification networks (INVN i.e., public blockchains/crypto networks) and use stablecoins for payment activities. Bitcoin and crypto prices have fallen modestly since the news. While some may be tempted to view the possibility of banks entering the blockchain space as a competitive threat for crypto valuations, we do not hold that view. We see the news as a long term positive for the crypto industry but think it could create other financial sector winners and losers.

● OCC Issues Guidance Clarifying Banks May Use Stablecoins For Payments: Stablecoins, which are digital blockchain tokens often pegged to ownership of a fiat currency like dollars held in a bank account, have been a fast-growing segment of the crypto industry, with a market cap today standing at ~$30B compared to ~$5B a year ago. To date, fiat backed stablecoins have mostly been issued by crypto exchanges, while banks awaiting greater regulatory certainty have stuck to accepting deposits on behalf of issuers. Following OCC guidance that banks may validate, store,...

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