EDX Markets Applies for OCC Trust Bank Charter

EDX Markets, a cryptocurrency exchange backed by major financial firms including Citadel Securities, Fidelity Digital Assets, and Charles Schwab, has applied for a national trust bank charter from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency to broaden its services for institutional clients. The application, submitted on April 1, seeks approval to operate custody, asset management, and principal trading functions under federal oversight while maintaining its existing order-matching platform.

The proposed charter would establish a regulated trust entity separate from EDX's core trading operations, a structure designed to mitigate conflicts of interest and operational risks prevalent in the digital asset sector. According to the filing, this separation aligns with practices in traditional markets such as equities and derivatives, where brokers, exchanges, custodians, and market makers function independently to protect client assets and ensure clear settlement processes. EDX Markets, which launched in the summer of 2023, positions itself as a platform tailored for institutional investors entering digital assets, offering non-custodial trading initially focused on assets like...