Trump Order and Fed Proposal Move Crypto Firms Closer to Federal Payment Rails
For years, one of the quietest but most stubborn barriers facing crypto companies in the United States has been plumbing. Without an account at the Federal Reserve, a crypto bank or stablecoin firm has to move dollars through a commercial bank partner, paying fees and depending on that partner’s willingness to keep the relationship. Two announcements over two days this week pushed that barrier in a new direction.
On Tuesday, President Donald Trump signed an executive order directing financial regulators to fold digital assets and new financial technology into the traditional payment system. On Wednesday, the Federal Reserve Board asked for public comment on a new, limited “payment account” designed for exactly the kind of institutions that have struggled to get full Fed access.
What the executive order directs
The order, published as Executive Order 14405 and titled “Integrating Financial Technology Innovation Into Regulatory Frameworks,” states that federal rules should be updated to bring “digital assets and innovative technology into traditional financial services and payment systems,” according to CoinDesk. It sets two deadlines. Within three months, the heads of federal financial regulators must review their rules and identify any that unduly block partnerships between fintech firms and federally regulated institutions. Within six months, they must take steps to encourage innovation based on that review.
The section that matters most to crypto firms concerns the Fed. The order asks the Board of Governors to review how uninsured depository institutions and non-bank financial companies gain access to payment accounts and services. It also asks whether the 12 regional Federal Reserve Banks can grant payment accounts independently of the Board in Washington.
That second question is pointed. Under current practice, the regional Reserve Banks decide access requests, but the Board sets guidelines that shape those decisions. Firms such as Wyoming’s special purpose depository institutions, state-chartered crypto banks that do not carry FDIC insurance, have spent years seeking accounts. In March, the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City granted Kraken’s Wyoming bank a limited master account, the first crypto bank to receive one.
Trump also signed a second order on Tuesday directing Treasury and regulators to tighten Bank Secrecy Act rules to block undocumented immigrants from accessing bank accounts and payment services.
The Fed’s payment account proposal
A day later, the Fed published its proposal. According to the Federal Reserve Board’s announcement, the payment account would let legally eligible institutions clear and settle payments directly through Reserve Bank services. The Board said many of the institutions asking for direct access have business models that are new and not federally insured, and that they want to lower costs and speed up payments.
The account is deliberately narrow. Holders would get no intraday credit and no access to the discount window, the Fed’s emergency lending facility. They would earn no interest on balances held at a Reserve Bank. They could use payment services only with automated controls that prevent overdrafts. Closing balances would be capped, with limits tied to each institution’s expected payment activity. The Board said the maximum cap is higher than in the prototype it floated in a December 2025 request for information, though it did not publish dollar figures in its release.
The proposal does not change who is legally eligible for a Fed account, and Reserve Banks would expect account holders to manage illicit finance risks. While the rule is being finalized, the Board is encouraging Reserve Banks to temporarily pause decisions on access requests from so-called Tier 3 institutions, those that are neither federally insured nor subject to federal prudential supervision. Comments are due 60 days after the proposal is published in the Federal Register.
Fed Governor Christopher Waller first floated the idea of a “skinny” master account in October 2025, and the December request for information laid out the basic design. This week’s proposal turns that concept into a formal rulemaking.
Why it matters for crypto
Direct Fed access would let crypto-native banks and payment firms settle dollar transactions without relying on a correspondent bank. That could lower costs for stablecoin issuers that need to move reserves quickly, reduce the risk of a sudden “debanking” when a partner bank exits, and make round-the-clock dollar settlement more practical for exchanges and brokers.
The restrictions also show what the Fed is not offering. Without interest on reserves or access to emergency credit, a payment account is a utility for moving money rather than a full banking relationship. That design is meant to address the central bank’s concern that firms without federal deposit insurance or supervision could create risks if given the same privileges as traditional banks.
Banks push back
Community banks reacted quickly. Rebecca Romero Rainey, president and chief executive of the Independent Community Bankers of America, said there are “significant gaps in regulation” between banks and non-bank firms and that similar activities should face similar rules, according to CoinDesk. She urged Fed officials to remember that Reserve Banks retain discretion under federal law to grant or deny master accounts to special purpose banks, stablecoin issuers and other crypto-related entities. The ICBA also called on policymakers to pause new policies on stablecoins, Fed master accounts and national trust charters.
The two moves now run on parallel tracks. The executive order’s three-month review clock started on Tuesday, and the Fed’s comment period will begin once the proposal appears in the Federal Register. Neither guarantees that any particular crypto firm will receive an account, but together they mark the clearest signal yet that Washington intends to open its payment rails to the industry on defined terms.