Charters and sponsor banks
Bank charter applications, industrial loan companies, trust banks and the bank partners behind fintech programs.
15 items in 9 issues, Oct 25, 2026 to Nov 8, 2026, newest first. Each item links to the issue it ran in, where its sources are listed.
Related: Regulation and policySezzleDeals and fundingOppFiFintech and new entrantsBuy now, pay laterAffirmPayments and networks
November 2026
- Sun, Nov 8 · The long read: The charter rush, as Democrats take the Senate
The rush. Fintech and digital-asset firms have filed about 31 de novo national bank applications in 2026, Morrison Foerster's Alexandra Barrage told Law.com, a pace not seen in nearly two decades. The OCC said in August that it had received 40 de novo applications over the previous 18 months, against fewer than four a year from 2011 to 2014. It also said it often decides within 120 days of a complete filing.
Read in the issue → - Sun, Nov 8 · The long read: The charter rush, as Democrats take the Senate
Faster approvals. The approvals are coming faster, too. Klaros Group found that the median time to approval fell to 166 days in early 2026 from 321 days in 2024. American Banker's tracker counts 33 fintech and crypto charter events this year through Oct. 30, among them three charters granted, 18 conditional approvals and one denial.
Read in the issue → - Sun, Nov 8 · The long read: The charter rush, as Democrats take the Senate
The pay-later race. All three large U.S. pay-later lenders now have bank applications pending. Affirm filed in January for Affirm Bank, a Nevada industrial loan company, and Klarna applied in July for a Utah bank charter. Sezzle applied to the OCC on Oct. 22 for a national bank, a review that CEO Charlie Youakim expects to take 12 to 18 months.
Read in the issue → - Sun, Nov 8 · The long read: The charter rush, as Democrats take the Senate
Buying a bank stalls. The other route, buying an existing bank, has run into resistance. Twenty state and District attorneys general asked regulators in July to deny charters and deals to fintechs with a "history of predatory lending or risky practices." Enova dropped its Grasshopper bid in September, saying the process "is susceptible to political pressure," and OppFi withdrew its BNC applications on Nov. 3 while keeping the merger agreement in effect.
Read in the issue → - Sun, Nov 8 · The long read: The charter rush, as Democrats take the Senate
Warren's gavel. Now that Democrats have taken the Senate, Warren is in line to control the Banking Committee's hearings and witnesses, issue subpoenas and slow nominees, American Banker reported. She has already pressed the OCC: in May she asked Comptroller Jonathan Gould for the applications and legal analyses behind at least nine crypto trust charters.
Read in the issue → - Sun, Nov 8 · The long read: The charter rush, as Democrats take the Senate
What to watch. The OCC's approvals do not need the Senate, but deposit insurance from the FDIC is the gating step for de novo banks and ILCs, and FDIC board seats need confirmation. The decisions to watch are the FDIC's rulings on Affirm's ILC and Klarna's Utah bank, Sezzle's OCC review and whether OppFi refiles or ends its BNC agreement.
Read in the issue → - Sat, Nov 7 · Interest earned
Charters, both ways. Sezzle applied in October for a national bank charter as Sezzle Bank, N.A., while OppFi withdrew its regulatory applications to buy Arizona's BNC National Bank, citing a "lack of clearly articulated standards," though its merger agreement remains in effect.
Read in the issue → - Fri, Nov 6 · Banks & charters
Charter path. High-rate lenders seeking bank charters face a tougher road with Warren in line to chair Senate Banking. OppFi said its merger agreement remains in effect and it still wants a charter, but 20 attorneys general had argued the deals were attempts to sidestep state usury caps.
Read in the issue → - Thu, Nov 5 · Earnings
Sezzle. Sezzle raised its 2026 revenue growth forecast to about 42.5% from 35%, its fourth increase this year, after third-quarter revenue rose 42.6% to $166.5 million and net income rose 79% to $47.8 million. Total transaction volume grew 34.9% to $1.4 billion, and the credit loss provision fell to 2.7% of volume from 3.1%, against a full-year target of about 2.5%. Sezzle applied in October for a national bank charter as Sezzle Bank, N.A., and set a preliminary 2027 adjusted EPS outlook of $7.20. Subscribers rose 68% to 955,000. "We enter the holiday season with Subscribers approaching one million and transaction frequency reaching a Company high," CEO Charlie Youakim said in the results release.
Read in the issue → - Wed, Nov 4 · Earnings
Mastercard. Mastercard's U.S. gross dollar volume rose 6% to $867 billion in the third quarter, trailing 8% growth to $2.08 trillion outside the U.S. It also expanded its HDFC Bank partnership in India with a small-business deal that could add up to 3 million cards.
Read in the issue → - Mon, Nov 2 · Banks & charters
Charter rush. Galaxy Digital applied last Thursday for an OCC national trust bank charter, days after Ripple's charter won final approval. American Banker's tracker, updated Friday, lists near-prime card issuer Mission Lane (conditionally approved in September) and installment lender Avant (applied in September).
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October 2026
- Wed, Oct 28 · Banks & charters
Ripple trust bank. The OCC granted final approval on Oct 26 for Ripple National Trust Bank, a national trust bank in New York. It will manage the reserves backing Ripple's RLUSD stablecoin and offer digital-asset custody. Ripple got preliminary approval in Dec 2025 alongside Circle, BitGo, Paxos and Fidelity Digital Assets, so more final decisions may follow.
Read in the issue → - Mon, Oct 26 · Banks & charters
Charter & merger pipeline. Approvals are speeding up. Context: Sep 2026: the OCC conditionally approved charters for Mission Lane (credit-card bank) and Revolut. Avant and Block applied. The FDIC proposed faster merger reviews; it says average review time is down to 64 days in 2026 from 107.
Read in the issue → - Sun, Oct 25 · BNPL & lending
Sezzle (Oct 22). Sezzle applied to the OCC for a national trust bank charter to add checking, savings and broader banking for "people who prefer BNPL." It dropped its earlier Utah ILC plan, citing new state BNPL rules (NY, IL, OR) and pushback on ILCs. The review is expected to take 12-18 months. TD Cowen called it "a smart move."
Read in the issue → - Sun, Oct 25 · Banks & charters
Charter wave. Block, Ramp, Avant and Modern Treasury have sought OCC charters in recent months, and Ramp applied the week before Sezzle. Context: Affirm applied for a Nevada ILC earlier in 2026, PayPal sought a Utah ILC in Dec 2025, and Upgrade filed for a Nevada ILC on Oct 12, 2026, naming ex-OCC and SoFi executive Virginia Varela as bank CEO.
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