Crypto Currents: Senator Warren challenges OCC’s crypto trust charter spree

Crypto’s institutional ambitions ran into dual regulatory headwinds as Senator Elizabeth Warren pressed the OCC to justify trust charter grants to Coinbase, BitGo, and peers, as the Bank of England signaled an aggregate cap on stablecoin issuance ahead of formal rules next month. Canaan reported Q1 results in line with guidance but issued a weaker Q2 outlook, while Hyperscale Data held its bitcoin position steady and BitGo launched a custody platform for banks. Stay up on the crypto news that matters with “Crypto Currents,” daily from The Fly. Join us at 2 PM ET for your essential briefing on the fast-moving world of cryptocurrency on FlyCast radio.

WARREN VS. OCC ON TRUST CHARTERS: Senator Elizabeth Warren sent a letter to OCC head Jonathan Gould challenging at least nine national trust bank charter approvals granted to crypto companies, calling them an “apparent violation of the National Bank Act,” as reported by Bloomberg. The letter specifically names Coinbase BTGO“>(BTGO) among the recipients of charters she argues were unlawfully issued. The practical stakes are significant: a national trust bank charter allows crypto firms to operate custody and fiduciary services across state lines without a patchwork of state licenses, lowering compliance costs and broadening institutional client reach. Warren’s challenge could force OCC to justify or revoke those approvals, injecting legal uncertainty into charter-holders’ expansion plans and potentially delaying Coinbase’s and BitGo’s institutional custody buildouts.

BOE STABLECOIN GUARDRAILS: The Bank of England said it is weighing “temporary guardrails” that would cap aggregate stablecoin issuance rather than impose per-holder limits, with formal rules expected next month, as Reuters reported. The proposal directly affects Circle (USDC-USD) franchise, as well as Coinbase, which earns a revenue-share on USDC balances. An aggregate issuance cap differs structurally from per-wallet limits: it constrains total float rather than individual holdings, meaning fast-growing stablecoin adoption could trigger a hard ceiling sooner than the market expects. With Circle’s IPO still fresh and its U.K. licensing ambitions on record, the BoE timeline concentrates regulatory calendar risk into a narrow window.

BITGO BANK PLATFORM LAUNCH: BitGo launched a modular digital asset operating platform targeting banks, covering custody, Crypto-as-a-Service, trading and settlement, stablecoin infrastructure, and wealth management tooling, as the company announced. The timing lands as Warren simultaneously questions BitGo’s OCC trust charter, pairing a commercial product push with fresh regulatory headwinds on the same day.

CANAAN Q1 RESULTS AND TREASURY: Canaan the company’s earnings release. For Q2, the company guided revenue of $35M–$45M, citing compressed hashprice and macro uncertainty. The Q2 guidance range implies a revenue step-down of roughly 30%-44% sequentially, a signal that hashprice compression continues to squeeze miner economics even as Canaan pads its balance sheet with native crypto assets. At the Bitcoin 2026 conference in Las Vegas, the company joined a panel on home mining’s resurgence, spotlighting its Avalon Home product line and retail distribution push.

HYPERSCALE DATA TREASURY UPDATE: Hyperscale Data a company press release. The company reaffirmed its intent to fully deploy its allocated cash into bitcoin over time.

CRYPTO CRIME AND EXCHANGE SECURITY: Physical attacks targeting crypto holders have prompted exchanges including Coinbase to harden executive security and conference protocols, with private security demand surging industry-wide, Bloomberg reported. The security escalation adds a new operational cost layer for public crypto companies with visible leadership, particularly those with retail-facing brands and high-profile conferences on the calendar.

PRICE ACTION: As of time of writing, bitcoin was trading at $76,166.26, while ether was trading at $2,098.26, according to price data from TipRanks.