Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr today faced blistering criticism in a Senate hearing for his September threats to revoke ABC station licenses over comments made by Jimmy Kimmel. While Democrats provided nearly all the criticism, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) said that Congress should act to restrict the FCC’s power to intimidate news broadcasters.
As an immediate result of today’s hearing, the FCC removed a statement from its website that said it is an independent agency. Carr, who has embraced President Trump’s declaration that independent agencies may no longer operate independently from the White House, apparently didn’t realize that the website still called the FCC an independent agency.
“Yes or no, is the FCC an independent agency?” Sen. Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.) asked. Carr answered that the FCC is not independent, prompting Luján to point to a statement on the FCC website calling the FCC “an independent US government agency overseen by Congress.”
Google Labs’ new CC experiment uses Gemini to send a daily “Your Day Ahead” email that summarizes your schedule and tasks, and you can reply to it anytime for help.
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) recently sparked a wave of criticism from traditional finance groups following its approval of conditional bank charters for five cryptocurrency firms: Ripple, Circle, BitGo, Paxos, and Fidelity.
Stablecoins Seen As Direct Threat
Following the OCC’s announcement, industry stakeholders quickly voiced their concerns. Traditional banks expressed apprehension that these approvals stretch the definition and historical purpose of the national trust bank charter.
Rebeca Romero Rainey, president and CEO of the Independent Community Bankers of America, stated that the conditional approvals endanger consumers and create institutions that the OCC may not effectively manage.
She further remarked that the new framework allows stablecoin operators access to the federal banking system without the rigorous capital and regulatory requirements that traditional banks must uphold.
Todd Phillips, a professor at Georgia State University and former attorney with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, also noted that stablecoins pose a direct threat to the conventional banking model.
He remarked that banks are reacting aggressively to counter this emerging competition from stablecoins, which are perceived as encroaching on their market share.
In defense of the OCC’s actions, Comptroller of the Currency Jonathan Gould emphasized the benefits of new entrants in the federal banking sector, asserting that they would introduce fresh products and services while enhancing competition. He views this as a positive move for consumers and the broader banking industry.
Banks Raise Alarm Over OCC’s Crypto Trust Charters
One key difference between trust banks and conventional banks is their inability to accept deposits or make loans. Nonetheless, banks are wary that these newly chartered firms may venture beyond merely holding assets to back stablecoins.
Rob Nichols, president and CEO of the American Bankers Association, expressed concern that this expansion of the trust charter blurs the lines defining banking activities and could lead to regulatory arbitrage.
The Bank Policy Institute (BPI) also raised questions about the OCC’s approval process, urging transparency to help the public understand the rationale behind these decisions. Greg Baer, the BPI’s president and CEO, emphasized the need for clarity around the applications.
The current conditional approvals for crypto trust banks present a more viable litigation landscape than earlier fintech charters, according to Andrew Grant, co-founder of Runway Group, a consultancy focused on financial technology.
Many banks are reportedly unhappy about the momentum of the OCC’s recent decisions, suggesting they may take steps to introduce regulatory friction against these new entrants.
Furthermore, the provisions of the GENIUS Act permit the establishment of national banks without deposit insurance, which complicates the ability of traditional banks to mount effective legal challenges against the approved cryptocurrency firms.
Todd Baker, a senior fellow at the Richman Center for Business, Law and Public Policy at Columbia Business School, noted that while litigation may yield some restrictions on crypto-related activities, it is unlikely to impact stablecoin issuance, redemption, or custody.
Featured image from DALL-E, chart from TradingView.com
The lawsuit between Ripple and the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) had dominated headlines for years, with XRP in the spotlight over its potential classification as a security. Now that the legal dispute is over and XRP has been definitively cleared as non-security, experts argue that Ripple’s greatest success extends far beyond XRP regulation.
Ripple’s True Victory Beyond XRP Regulation
A crypto market expert operating under the name “Stellar Rippler” on X has shared a compelling report that reassesses what truly constitutes Ripple’s biggest win. The analyst highlighted that the real win for Ripple was not regulatory approval but an intellectual shift in how the project is perceived.
The expert highlighted that while he favors XRP, he has historically been skeptical of Ripple’s intentions. However, he stated that the recent approval of the crypto company’s bank charter by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) speaks volumes about Ripple’s long-term vision in the financial sector.
Last week, on December 12, the OCC granted conditional approval to five crypto-related firms, including Ripple, to obtain national trust bank charters. This achievement marked a significant milestone for Ripple, reinforcing its legitimacy in traditional finance despite the numerous oppositions.
In his post, the analyst compares XRP and XLM, noting that the debate between the two cryptocurrencies has often been driven by emotion. He said that discussions were frequently centered on conflicts between retail and institutions, accusations of token dumpings, and differing visions for the future.
According to the expert, XRP and XLM have always been structurally similar, both designed for fast, low-cost settlement, cross-border liquidity, interoperability, and real-world financial infrastructure. However, he notes that the primary difference between the two cryptocurrencies has always been strategy rather than values.
He explained that while Ripple prioritized tackling regulatory hurdles, banking, and building institutional partnerships first, Stellar focused on grassroots adoption and open networks. With the new OCC bank charter, the expert emphasizes that Ripple’s strategic approach is now clearly validated and undeniable.
Stellar Rippler highlighted that Ripple did not abandon its crypto principles but took on the regulatory responsibility to ensure its network could operate at scale. He stated that this milestone shows that history favors builders who solve foundational problems rather than those who focus on tribal disputes.
Stellar Expert Shifts Stance After Ripple Gains OCC Approval
In a previous post, Stellar Rippler publicly announced a significant change in perspective on Ripple following news that the company had received conditional approval for a national bank charter. He admitted he was wrong in his past views, describing the recent development as a full submission to the highest level of federal and state oversight in the United States.
The Stellar expert now believes that Ripple is firmly committed to long-term global finance, stating that a company would not take such a path if it were not building something designed to last decades. He added that this milestone represents maturity and legitimacy for Ripple and strengthens confidence in XRP.
Legendary analyst Peter Brandt has criticized XRP investors, describing them as uneducated. His criticism comes amid the drop below the psychological $2 level, despite recent fundamentals that paint a bullish picture for the altcoin.
Peter Brandt Describes XRP Investors As “Uneducated”
In an X post, Brandt stated that XRP investors, who are permabulls, are the most uneducated and biased set of people he has seen over his 50 years of trading. The veteran trader classified this set of investors alongside those who trumpet Silver. He also highlighted how this was a big deal considering that he has traded thousands of contracts of every commodity, stock indexes, and many cryptos.
XRP has, over the years, been known to have one of the strongest crypto communities, which commonly refer to themselves as the ‘XRP Army.’ Brandt has, on several occasions, been criticized by some investors over some of his bearish predictions for the altcoin. This has led to him calling them out in the past whenever he makes such predictions.
It is worth mentioning that Brandt had also earlier in the month asserted that the “most madly obsessed perma-bulls” on earth are bulls. Although the veteran trader didn’t state an exact reason for making these statements, some pundits have developed a knack for making outlandish price predictions.
An example of such a pundit is Barry C, who recently stated that the price will skyrocket from $2 to $1,000 a lot sooner than people anticipate. The pundit has in the past alluded to banks’ potential adoption of the token as a factor that could spark the rally to $1,000. He recently highlighted the OCC’s grant of a conditional approval to Ripple to operate as a bank, which provides a boost for the altcoin.
Largest IQ Holder Is Now A Bull
XRP pundit Zach Rector clapped back against Brandt’s statement, noting that the largest IQ holder is now an XRP bull. The largest IQ holder, Young Hoon Kim, recently revealed that he had started buying the token, having become bullish on the altcoin. He also predicted that the altcoin could reach a new all-time high (ATH) before the year ends.
Meanwhile, in his latest X post, Kim opined that the price could potentially reach $100 over the next five years. However, he didn’t mention what could spark such a parabolic price surge for the altcoin. It is worth mentioning that such predictions have raised eyebrows because of what the altcoin’s market cap will be if it reaches such price targets. A $100 price target would give XRP a market cap of almost $10 trillion.
At the time of writing, the token’s price is trading at around $1.98, down over 2% in the last 24 hours, according to data from CoinMarketCap.
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) has granted Ripple a conditional approval to become a national trust bank. Crypto pundit Stern Drew highlighted what this means for the crypto firm and also XRP, which it uses for its payment services.
What The OCC Approval Means For Ripple And XRP
In an X post, Stern Drew stated that Ripple just broke the system following the OCC’s grant of a conditional approval to the crypto firm. He further noted that Ripple now has federal and regulatory oversight locked in with this approval. The pundit added that the RLUSD stablecoin has become the gold standard for compliant stablecoins, while XRP has stepped straight into the heart of the U.S. financial system.
Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse also reacted to the OCC’s grant of a conditional approval, stating that it was huge news. He remarked that this was a massive step forward, mainly for the RLUSD stablecoin, which is setting the highest standard for stablecoin compliance with both federal and state oversight.
In a press release, the firm also indicated how this development positions RLUSD and XRP by extension for greater adoption. The firm stated that as traditional finance firms continue to enter the crypto market, they will look to leverage stablecoins with the highest regulatory rigor and compliance, which offer the trust and reliability required for enterprise adoption.
Meanwhile, the payment firm confirmed that its banking services will also extend the same regulatory rigor behind RLUSD into its broader payments and institutional service offerings, which utilize XRP. The firm further noted that utility is already driving adoption as its stablecoin has surpassed $1 billion in market cap in less than a year. The company added that the stablecoin is actively used in its payment solutions and as collateral by prime brokers, including its prime brokerage.
An “XRP Wake Up Call”
Crypto pundit BarriC described the OCC’s grant of a conditional approval to Ripple as an XRP wake-up call for those who may still be skeptical of the altcoin. He stated that for those who said that banks would never use XRP or partner with Ripple, the crypto firm has now also been granted a banking license.
The pundit noted that this is significant as over half of Ripple’s transactions for its payment services go through XRP. The altcoin has also received a huge boost as Swiss bank AMINA bank has become the first European bank to integrate Ripple’s payment services. BarriC highlighted that the bank will ultimately use XRP through its integration with Ripple payments. Meanwhile, crypto analyst Dark Defender indicated that Ripple’s status as a Trust bank could be one of the catalysts that lead to higher prices for XRP.
At the time of writing, the XRP price is trading $2.01, down in the last 24 hours, according to data from CoinMarketCap.
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) conditionally approved national trust bank charters for five digital asset firms on Friday, including Ripple, Circle, and Fidelity Digital Assets. The move formally integrates these entities into the federal banking system, granting them direct access to the Federal Reserve’s payment rails and pre-empting state-level oversight.
New entrants into the federal banking sector are good for consumers, the banking industry and the economy. Read about the OCC’s conditional approval of five national trust bank charter applications. https://t.co/xF3GzoJXGfpic.twitter.com/NhV3HfoFNj
“New entrants into the federal banking sector are good for consumers, the banking industry, and the economy,” Comptroller Jonathan Gould said in the release.
The Approved List:
New Charters: Circle’s First National Digital Currency Bank, Ripple National Trust Bank.
Conversions (State to National): Paxos Trust Co., BitGo Bank & Trust, Fidelity Digital Assets.
The approvals follow the July 18 enactment of the ‘GENIUS Act’ (Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins), which mandated a federal framework for the $314 billion stablecoin market.
Additionally, the OCC released Interpretive Letter 1188 on Tuesday (Dec. 9), explicitly permitting national banks to trade crypto assets on a “riskless principal” basis.
OCC Interpretive Letter 1188 confirms that a national bank may engage in riskless principal crypto-asset transactions as part of the business of banking. https://t.co/gXirMExhCipic.twitter.com/uPRFGqb2NZ
Despite the structural liquidity upgrade, XRP ($2.00, -2.19%) showed no immediate volatility. Traders appear to have priced in the approval following the GENIUS Act’s passage.
Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire noted the charter “deepens” the firm’s ability to settle USDC directly via the Fed, bypassing commercial bank intermediaries.
Institutional Shift: De-Risking Digital Finance
This is a liquidity infrastructure event, not a retail pump. By securing national charters, Circle and Paxos effectively remove the “commercial bank counterparty risk” that triggered the USDC depeg during the SVB collapse.
For desks, this means 24/7 settlement finality via FedMaster accounts is imminent. Expect the spread between onshore regulated stablecoins and offshore equivalents (USDT) to widen as institutions migrate capital to Fed-integrated rails.
The U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) has granted conditional approvals for five digital asset firms — Ripple, Circle, Fidelity Digital Assets, BitGo, and Paxos — to become federally chartered national trust banks, marking a major milestone in the integration of cryptocurrency into traditional finance.
Once finalized, these institutions will join roughly 60 other national trust banks regulated by the OCC, gaining the ability to offer fiduciary and custody services nationwide.
Unlike larger national banks, trust banks cannot accept cash deposits or make loans, but they can hold and manage customers’ digital assets.
‘Huge news’ for crypto
Circle, issuer of the $78 billion USDC stablecoin, said the charter would enhance the safety and regulatory oversight of its reserves while enabling fiduciary digital asset custody for institutional clients.
CEO Jeremy Allaire emphasized that the federal charter would provide “greater clarity and confidence” to institutions building on Circle’s platform as stablecoins gain mainstream adoption.
Paxos, known for PYUSD and the consortium-backed Global Dollar (USDG), said federal oversight would allow businesses to issue, custody, trade, and settle digital assets with clarity and confidence.
The firm, which has operated under a New York Department of Financial Services (NYDFS) charter since 2015, first applied for a federal charter in 2020.
BitGo, a South Dakota–based crypto custodian, said the federal charter would allow it to expand services nationwide, including trading, staking, stablecoin, and treasury offerings for institutions. BitGo has also filed to go public, reporting $4.19 billion in revenue for the first half of 2025, up from $1.12 billion during the same period in 2024.
The approvals reflect a broader trend toward federal oversight of digital assets, coming after Anchorage Digital became the first federally chartered crypto bank in the U.S. Other firms, including Coinbase, Bridge (owned by Stripe), and Crypto.com, have also applied for federal charters.
OCC Comptroller Jonathan V. Gould emphasized that new entrants into the federal banking sector benefit consumers, foster competition, and promote innovation.
“The OCC will continue to provide a path for both traditional and innovative approaches to financial services to ensure the federal banking system keeps pace with the evolution of finance and supports a modern economy,” Gould said.
On Friday, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) approved national trust charter applications from several key firms in the industry including Circle’s First National Digital Currency Bank, Ripple National Trust Bank, BitGo Bank & Trust, Fidelity Digital Assets, and Paxos Trust Company.
OCC’s Approval Of Digital Asset Trust Banks
Once finalized and full approval is reached, these national trust bank charters would empower the crypto companies to manage and hold assets on behalf of their customers, enabling faster payment settlements.
Currently, Anchorage Digital is the only digital asset company that holds a national trust bank charter from the OCC, which oversees a total of 60 such institutions.
Comptroller Jonathan Gould emphasized that each application underwent a thorough and rigorous review process, underscoring the necessity for each entity to meet additional conditions before gaining full operational status.
He explained that welcoming new entrants into the banking landscape aids in modernizing the system, diversifying offerings, and enhancing access to innovative financial products.
Ripple CEO Challenges Banking Lobbyists
Brad Garlinghouse, CEO of Ripple, commented on the approval via social media, highlighting it as a significant advancement for Ripple’s stablecoin, RLUSD. He stated that it sets a high standard for compliance under both federal and state regulation.
Garlinghouse also took a moment to address banking lobbyists who may have opposed this move, asserting that their “anti-competitive tactics” are evident.
The executive pointed out that while these lobbyists have argued that the crypto industry does not abide by the same regulations, the recent approvals demonstrate that the crypto sector is operating transparently under the supervision of the OCC.
Stuart Alderoty, Ripple’s Chief Legal Officer, noted that the firm is among the first entities to receive conditional approval following the enactment of the GENIUS legislation, ensuring the sustainability of Ripple’s stablecoin business for the long term.
Featured image from DALL-E, chart from TradingView.com
The latest analysis circulating is that the Canadian fintech analysts are becoming increasingly bullish on XRP, pointing to a surge in real-world utility that could reshape the digital payments landscape. The financial institutions have continued to adopt blockchain-based settlement systems. This growing utility has led several Canadian researchers to issue an explosive new forecast.
How XRP’s Real-world Utility Is Expanding Faster Than Market Valuations
Canada’s fintech landscape is shifting, and XRP is rapidly emerging as one of its most influential digital assets. According to a video shared by crypto analyst Skipper_xrp, a Canadian news article highlighted that XRP could become the most compelling fintech play in the entire crypto sector and that it could reach as high as $2,000 by 2027.
It is worth noting that XRP is no longer just a speculative asset in Canada. It’s now being viewed by Canadian analysts and market observers as a tangible fintech tool powering real change in cross-border payment, with a clear path to becoming a cornerstone of modern finance by 2027. The article also predicts that XRP could become the strongest fintech play in crypto.
Skipper_xrp added that RACO, which is known as the beloved raccoon-themed token, has quickly become one of the most talked-about projects and is making a splash on the XRP Ledger. While RACO is gaining traction as more users adopt it for transactions, it is emerging as a standout choice within the XRPL ecosystem. Furthermore, the RACO tokens are now officially available for community members to get early access and be part of the project’s growth.
Why The Financial Institutions Can Now Offer XRP Access With Confidence
In a major regulatory breakthrough of the Ripple Ledger, analyst Skipper_xrp has also stated that the US Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) has confirmed that the national banks are now legally permitted to conduct riskless principal transactions in crypto-assets. This riskless principal activity will open the door for the token to be used in these regulated operations and give banks a compliant way to facilitate XRP-based trades and payments.
Furthermore, with the OCC’s confirmation, US national banks can now act as intermediaries for XRP transactions in a fully regulated manner without taking any market risk. This makes it easier for institutional and retail clients to access and use XRP through trusted, regulated financial institutions.
According to Skipper_xrp, this ruling provides regulatory clarity and gives XRP a competitive edge in the US market, making it the perfect asset for banks to integrate into their service offerings. Such a move could power increased adoption and liquidity for the asset.
On Wednesday, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) released findings that have raised alarm bells regarding crypto debanking, reigniting fears of what some are dubbing “Operation Chokepoint 2.0” within the financial sector.
This supervisory review focused on nine of the largest national banks under OCC supervision, including JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Citibank, Wells Fargo, US Bank, Capital One, PNC Bank, TD Bank, and BMO Bank.
‘Harmful Debanking Policies’
The preliminary findings from the OCC reveal troubling trends: between 2020 and 2023, these banks appeared to make unwarranted distinctions among customers based on their legal business activities.
Specifically, many of these institutions maintained policies that either restricted access to financial services or required heightened scrutiny and approvals for certain clients.
The OCC identified examples where at least one bank imposed limitations on various sectors, including crypto, due to their engagement in activities considered “contrary to [the bank’s] values,” even though those activities were not illegal.
Sectors affected by these policies included oil and gas exploration, coal mining, firearms, private prisons, tobacco and e-cigarettes, adult entertainment, and notably, digital assets.
The findings indicated that many banks placed strict limitations on crypto-related activities as well, which often stemmed from concerns about financial crime.
These practices, the OCC confirmed, were prevalent at each of the banks examined in the review. Comptroller Jonathan V. Gould expressed frustration regarding the situation, stating:
It is unfortunate that the nation’s largest banks thought these harmful debanking policies were an appropriate use of their government-granted charter and market power.
Gould noted that while many of these policies were publicly announced, some banks have maintained that they did not participate in debanking.
In his comments, Comptroller Gould emphasized the OCC’s commitment to eliminating practices that would “weaponize finance,” whether instigated by regulators or the banks themselves.
National Banks To Facilitate Crypto Transactions
The agency disclosed that it is still evaluating “thousands of complaints” related to allegations of political and religious debanking, with plans to report on these findings “in due course.” The OCC aims to hold banks accountable for these actions and ensure that unlawful debanking practices do not persist.
This follows Tuesday’s letter from the banking regulator that allows national banks to participate in “riskless principal transactions” involving cryptocurrencies. This permits national banks to buy and sell cryptocurrencies for their customers’ accounts.
This new structure allows users to transact in crypto-assets through established national banks, resulting in a more regulated environment than exchanges that operate outside of strict oversight regulation.
Featured image from DALL-E, chart from TradingView.com
The U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency has released preliminary findings from a sweeping review into debanking practices at the country’s nine largest national banks, revealing that all of them imposed “inappropriate” restrictions on lawful businesses, including firms operating in the digital-asset sector.
The review, ordered under President Donald Trump’s Executive Order on “Guaranteeing Fair Banking for All Americans,” examined practices at JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Citibank, Wells Fargo, U.S. Bank, Capital One, PNC, TD Bank and BMO.
The OCC is committed to ending efforts that weaponize finance. Read the OCC’s preliminary findings from its supervisory review of debanking activities at the nine largest national banks. https://t.co/pFMi7Rt8khpic.twitter.com/XWfbCheo91
According to the regulator, these banks maintained internal policies between 2020 and 2023 that treated customers differently based on the nature of their legal business activities.
The OCC found that several institutions required escalated approvals or imposed blanket restrictions on entire sectors viewed as conflicting with the banks’ “values.”
The list of affected industries stretched from oil and gas to firearms, private prisons, tobacco, and adult entertainment. Digital asset companies were included among the businesses facing barriers.
Regulator Says Banks Used Charter Powers Improperly as Crypto Debanking Spread
Comptroller of the Currency Jonathan Gould said the agency’s early findings show that these policies were not isolated cases but widespread across the institutions reviewed.
He described the practices as harmful to lawful enterprises and an inappropriate use of a national bank charter.
While the banks have insisted that they did not engage in discriminatory account closures, the OCC said many of the policies were visible publicly, and its investigations will continue until a full accounting is completed.
The agency’s work builds on a review launched in September 2025 and covers thousands of complaints, including claims of political and religious debanking.
According to the regulator, those findings will be released later. Debanking typically occurs when banks decide it is safer to sever ties with certain customers rather than risk regulatory scrutiny.
In the case of crypto businesses, the pressure has often come indirectly through warnings, consultations, or guidance that banks interpret as cautionary notes from their regulators.
One example referenced in the broader debate occurred when the FDIC encouraged banks to “pause” crypto-related activities without issuing a direct prohibition.
That kind of communication, combined with compliance fears, made the sector a high-risk area for banks to service and left crypto firms struggling to maintain basic operational accounts.
Crypto Debanking Sparks Political Clash Amid New Fair-Access Push
The issue has grown into a political flashpoint. President Trump signed an executive order in August intended to stop the practice of debanking customers solely for involvement in crypto or other legal industries.
Lawmakers in states such as Florida, Idaho, Tennessee, and others have pushed their own “fair access” laws designed to block banks from using ideological or non-financial criteria when assessing customers.
Regulators consistently deny any coordinated effort to cut off crypto access, arguing that decisions stem from anti-money-laundering obligations. Federal law requires banks to monitor and report suspicious activity, and institutions face steep penalties when they fail to comply.
The tensions extend beyond bank account closures. Former U.S. Solicitor General Donald Verrilli has argued in court filings that crypto-focused Custodia Bank was denied a Federal Reserve master account because regulators treated the digital asset sector as inherently unsafe.
Several former officials and lawmakers have filed briefs supporting the claim. The case remains on appeal and could take on greater significance after a recent Supreme Court opinion curbed deference to federal agencies’ interpretations of the law.
The 43-day partial government shutdown left us all bereft of information technology news and updates on program progress. Now that agencies are funded at least through Jan. 31, the conference circuit is in its end-of-the-year sprint and lawmakers are working on the final touches of the defense authorization bill, there are some interesting IT news items that have emerged over the last week or so. Here are three of them that deserve highlighting.
TMF Board beats deadline
The Technology Modernization Fund officially expires on Friday, meaning the board can only continue to oversee and fund existing awards.
While the House was attempting to add a provision to the fiscal 2026 defense authorization bill to extend the TMF, the board quietly made at least one new award before the impending deadline.
The National Nuclear Security Administration earned an investment of $28.3 million for three separate, but interrelated modernization projects.
The agency will use the funding “to modernize the foundational technology infrastructure supporting its nuclear security missions through an integrated cloud and artificial intelligence transformation. Current systems have critical vulnerabilities: the FireGuard wildfire monitoring activity requires intensive manual analysis across classification barriers; the Turbo Federal Radiological Monitoring and Assessment Center (FRMAC) radiological assessment tool cannot communicate with other emergency response applications; and limited AI development infrastructure prevents rapid evaluation of models for nuclear security threats. These vulnerabilities hamper data aggregation, slow emergency response, and leave gaps in the agency’s ability to assess evolving technological risks.”
A government source with knowledge of the TMF award said most of the funding — about $23 million — will go to modernizing the AI infrastructure for NNSA’s classified environment.
For example, NNSA recently implemented AskSage’s platform to access secure AI tools through the Army’s tenet.
The source said through the TMF investment, NNSA can more quickly implement its own version of AWS, Microsoft and Google clouds with AI tools built in.
NNSA expects to create a centralized AI infrastructure for its classified users to make it easier for them to access these tools more quickly.
This was NNSA’s second TMF award. It won $3.8 million in July 2024 to modernize its Radiological Response Data Portal.
The source said the other two projects, for which NNSA will receive about $3 million for FRMAC and $2 million for FireGuard, were grouped together as part of the overall modernization initiative because they will rely on AI and machine learning tools.
“Through the TMF, FireGuard aims to use machine learning to automatically track fire boundaries and move data between computing systems. This automation would allow analysts to spend their time verifying maps instead of drawing them from scratch, which is particularly critical as wildfires pose growing risks to nuclear sites,” the TMF states on its website. “Through the TMF, NNSA plans to shift the Turbo FRMAC radiological assessment tool from its legacy desktop software to a cloud‑based platform, providing emergency teams with the speed, accuracy, and collaborative capability they need to protect the public and critical infrastructure during radiological crises.”
The source said while much of the work to modernize the systems and to develop the AI infrastructure was already underway, the TMF money certainly will help NNSA move faster.
And that idea of moving faster brings us back to Congress failing to extend the program’s authorization. While plenty of programs operate without authorization, it seems like this type of investment, at least for the short term, is on hold.
There still is some hope, as the Senate did allocate $5 million for the TMF in fiscal 2026 in its version of the Financial Services and General Government appropriations bill. This is the first time in three years lawmakers didn’t zero out new funding for the TMF.
Commerce, USDA race for AI
The departments of Commerce and Agriculture are in a friendly race to see who can implement the new USAi platform first.
Brian Epley, Commerce’s chief information officer, said at ACT-IAC’s Executive Leadership Conference last week that, hopefully within the next few weeks, employees at all bureaus will be able to begin using the different large language models for their use cases.
Meanwhile, Tony Brannum, the chief information security officer at Agriculture, said deployment of the AI shared service across the agency is imminent as well.
These would be the first agencies to take advantage of the USAi platform, which GSA launched in March and expanded this summer to provide generative AI chatbot tools for other agencies.
“The code base is the same as GSAi. It is just a copy for our agency partners to use so that they can do that deep exploration across a broad portfolio of generative AI technologies and large language models, but most importantly, capture the observability telemetry data so that they can make informed decisions about how they’re going to buy well into this disruptive space in the future,” GSA CIO Dave Shive said at the ELC conference.
GSA says the USAi platform is part of how it’s providing agencies the opportunity to try out AI tools that previously would’ve either been cost prohibitive to roll out across the agency or included too much risk.
Zach Whitman, GSA’s chief AI officer, said USAi has become an interagency project in terms of developing and learning from its use.
“With a tool like USAi, you can really get practical, hands-on data to suggest these are the ways in which we’re seeing this adoption curve today. And the telemetry that we’re gathering in terms of how frequently do people use the thing is an important step for the program development,” Whitman said. “But then also, what are they asking of this tool? What kinds of mission functions are they using this tool for? That true fidelity on how the thing is being used is, I would argue that the real value proposition of a tool like USAi is to be able to see inside how the workforce is truly adopting this new technology to such granularity, and then shape policy and workflows to maximize that utility has been an eye opener for us, as well as our partners.”
As for Commerce, Epley said it will use the chat prompt tools to answer specific questions that arise in each bureau based on their individual use cases.
“We have an AI use case inventory of more than 300. USAi will bring Commerce to life when it comes to AI tools,” he said. “We looked at what we were doing on our own when it came to AI and decided it was best to partner with GSA. The majority of our workforce doesn’t have a working knowledge of AI, so now they will have tools at their fingertips. We expect USAi to increase our productivity for our employees and for the mission.”
Epley added that Commerce will use its lessons from implementing USAi and create a playbook for other agencies to ease their move to the shared service.
This is a multi-year effort for Commerce, as Epley expects they will have to optimize the value of the LLMs and figure out which tools are best for which mission area.
As for USDA, the implementation of USAi is the culmination of a decade-long journey to improve its data tagging.
Brannum said knowing what data the agency has, where it’s located, and who has access to it will make the application of AI tools easier.
“There is a lot of interest in AI across the agency. We are asked why something is blocked, or once they see something out there from GSA, they ask to use it,” he said.
JWCC-Next, JOE and more from DISA
The Defense Information Systems Agency will continue to run its own multiple award contracts for the foreseeable future. DISA’s Procurement Services Executive Doug Packard, who will retire in January after more than 35 years in government, said the agency has no immediate plans to consolidate acquisition programs into GSA.
That means the Joint Warfighting Cloud Computing Contract-Next (JWCC-Next) and several other high profile programs will remain in play for 2026.
At DISA’s annual industry day on Monday, executives said JWCC-Next, Olympus, the Joint Operational Environment (JOE) and several other major IT programs are positioned for significant progress over the next year.
Byron Stephenson, the J-9 vice director for the Host and Compute Center at DISA, said DISA has been working with the DoD CIO’s office to collect requirements for the new contract.
“We are still looking at all the requirements that were collected across the department to ensure we bring the best cloud capable contract for the future,” Stephenson said.
He expects DISA to issue the JWCC-Next solicitation during the third quarter of fiscal 2026 and make an award about a year later.
Additionally, DISA will issue a solicitation in the second quarter of fiscal 2026 for technical support for the JWCC engineering program office.
As for the current iteration of the contract, which DoD awarded in November 2021, Stephenson said the use by the services continues to grow.
“In 2025, had over $3.9 billion in total orders. We are actively seeing increases as the Air Force onboards to the contract now,” he said. “We had large Army orders last year, so it is continuing to see progress.”
Aside from JWCC-Next, DISA J-9 is busy implementing several large scale technology programs. Stephenson said the joint operational environment is operational in multiple theaters with active workloads, including the Indo-Pacific Command. Through JOE, DISA is bringing commercial cloud services to commands located outside the continental United States.
Meanwhile, DISA’s Olympus, which is its infrastructure-as-code initiative, is active in two environments, AWS and Microsoft, and military services and agencies can take advantage of the tools through DISA’s working capital fund.
A conservative group yesterday urged the Federal Communications Commission to take licenses away from NPR and PBS stations and let other entities use the spectrum. The request came from the Center for American Rights (CAR), a nonprofit law firm that has played a prominent role in the news-distortion investigations spearheaded by FCC Chairman Brendan Carr.
“In the wake of the wind-down of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and the end of federal funding for NPR and PBS, the Center respectfully suggests that the Commission open an inquiry that looks at the future of ‘public’ broadcasting in that new environment,” a Center for American Rights filing said.
The CPB is set to shut down after Congress approved President Trump’s request to rescind its funding. The Center for American Rights said the CPB shutdown should be used as an opportunity to reassign spectrum used by NPR and PBS stations to other entities.
In a new major breakthrough for the digital asset industry in the United States, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) announced on Tuesday that national banks are permitted to engage in “riskless principal transactions” involving crypto-assets.
This confirmation comes through the issuance of Interpretive Letter 1188, which outlines the guidelines for such activities.
OCC’s New Framework
According to the OCC’s guidance, acting as a riskless principal for crypto-assets aligns with the services that national banks already offer to custody customers.
National banks are now allowed to buy and sell both financial and non-financial assets held in custody based on customer directions, adhering to existing agreements and legal requirements.
Therefore, facilitating the buying and selling of digital assets for custody customers in a riskless principal capacity is essentially the same as acting as an agent for those customers, and it is acknowledged as a legitimate banking activity.
This new framework means that customers can transact in crypto-assets through established national banks, providing a more regulated environment compared to exchanges that operate outside the purview of strict financial oversight.
Key Concern For Banks In Crypto Transactions
The OCC also distinguished between riskless principal transactions in digital assets and those in traditional securities. The primary differences lie in the underlying assets and the technology used to facilitate these transactions.
The main concern associated with riskless principal transactions is counterparty credit risk, especially settlement risk. Similarly, in customer-driven, perfectly matched derivative transactions that utilize transitory title transfer, credit risk is the predominant factor. In the letter, the OCC concluded the following:
As with any activity, a bank that conducts riskless principal crypto-asset transactions must do so in a safe and sound manner and in compliance with applicable law. The OCC will examine riskless principal crypto-asset activities as part of its ongoing supervisory process.
Featured image from DALL-E, chart from TradingView.com
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) has clarified that national banks may engage in “riskless principal” transactions involving crypto-assets.
In its new Interpretive Letter 1188, the OCC explained that such transactions allow a bank to act as a principal between two customers, buying crypto from one while simultaneously selling it to another.
The bank does not hold the assets in inventory, effectively serving as a broker acting on behalf of clients.
This guidance follows a broader regulatory trend to ease restrictions on crypto activities within the traditional banking sector. In March, the OCC removed prior requirements for banks to seek advance approval before engaging in certain crypto operations, signaling growing acceptance of digital assets in mainstream finance.
In other words, U.S. banks can now offer crypto services in a manner similar to traditional brokerage activities.
Last week, Bank of America announced it would allow wealth management clients to allocate 1%–4% of their portfolios to digital assets.
The guidance applied across Merrill, Bank of America Private Bank, and Merrill Edge, enabling more than 15,000 advisers—previously restricted—to recommend crypto proactively.
Also, earlier today, PNC Bank became the first major U.S. bank to offer eligible Private Bank clients direct bitcoin trading through its own platform, powered by Coinbase’s infrastructure. The service allowed qualified clients to buy, hold, and sell bitcoin without using an external exchange.
The launch followed a strategic partnership with Coinbase announced in July.
Full OCC letter details
In essence, the letter basically confirmed that national banks may engage in ‘riskless principal transactions’ in crypto-assets.
Per the letter, a riskless principal transaction occurs when a bank buys an asset from one counterparty with the simultaneous agreement to sell it immediately to another, without holding the asset in inventory except in rare cases like settlement failures.
In this role, the bank functions similarly to a broker, taking on limited settlement, market, and credit risk.
The letter made a distinction between crypto-assets that are securities and those that are not. Riskless principal transactions in crypto-assets classified as securities are already permissible under existing law, as the bank acts without recourse, meaning it does not assume customer risk.
The OCC extends this reasoning to crypto-assets that are not securities, framing the activity as part of the broader “business of banking.”
Under U.S. law, the business of banking is not narrowly defined, allowing banks to engage in new activities that logically extend their traditional functions.
The OCC analyzed the activity using four factors: its similarity to recognized banking activities, its benefit to banks and customers, the nature of the risks involved, and whether state-chartered banks are authorized to perform it.
Riskless principal crypto-asset transactions align with traditional brokerage and custody services, benefit customers by providing regulated access to crypto-assets, and carry risks familiar to banks, such as settlement risk.
State regulatory frameworks do not prohibit similar activity, supporting the federal permissibility.
Ripple and the XRP ecosystem have entered one of their most important weeks to date. A series of regulatory and market-structure breakthroughs has pushed the token deeper into the core of federally supervised financial infrastructure, and this carries implications far beyond short-term sentiment, starting with its advancement into new territory under the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
A New Regulatory Alignment Surrounds XRP
Bitnomial, a CFTC-regulated derivatives and spot-crypto platform, secured approval to include XRP within its market structure of the first US-regulated spot-crypto market. This allowed the Chicago-based exchange to activate a supervised spot-XRP contract in the United States, as well as accept the token as margin collateral across its derivatives products.
The move placed XRP in the same operational category as traditional commodities that must meet liquidity and settlement standards before entering federally regulated markets.
Behind these approvals sits a story that many observers initially missed. An market participant who goes by the name SonOfaRichard on the social media platform pointed out the significance of what had unfolded.
He noted that the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CTFC), the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and the Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC), three agencies with entirely different remits, moved in the same direction in the same week.
According to him, the altcoin effectively transitioned into a commodity-grade collateral asset within a federally regulated derivatives ecosystem, and he described this not as a narrative but as plumbing. This is the same standard applied to gold, FX, treasuries, and LME metals.
Secondly, the SEC did not object to the CFTC’s move with Bitnomial, and that silence carried far more weight than a formal statement, because it pointed to an unusual moment of alignment between agencies that typically operate with different mandates on XRP.
Thirdly, Bitnomial itself became the quiet kingmaker in this entire development, not because of its brand presence or daily trading volume, but because its regulatory position places it in integration with clearing flows that plug directly into institutional pipes. A platform like that does not list XRP unless regulators have already determined what it is.
An Exciting Phase For The Token’s Outlook
Lastly, the DTCC moved toward 24×5 settlement windows. According to the commentator, this move was about interoperability with digital collateral, tokenized treasuries, and real-time clearing.
Taken together, these milestones are not surface-level headlines. They represent a change in how XRP is being integrated. The asset is now accepted as a collateral currency, listed under CFTC oversight, and actively trading inside the country’s first regulated spot-crypto framework.
All these recent advancements by Ripple now point to the ecosystem entering a phase that investors have waited years to witness. The question now may no longer be whether institutions will adopt the token, but how quickly they integrate it into the flows of modern digital finance.
OnePlus is ready to sell its new flagship smartphone in the US weeks after it made the device official. Having now finally gotten Federal Communications Commission clearance, the OnePlus 15 is available for preorder. It’s currently only live on the OnePlus storefront, but the device will eventually come to Amazon and Best Buy as well.
The OnePlus 15 launched in China earlier this year, and it was supposed to go on sale in the US a month ago. However, the longest US government shutdown on record got in the way. Most of the FCC’s functions were suspended during the weekslong funding lapse, which prevented the agency from certifying new wireless products. Without that approval, OnePlus could not begin selling the phone. Thus, it had no firm release date when the phone was officially unveiled for the US in early November.
Interested parties can head to the OnePlus website to place an order. The base model starts at $900 with 12GB of RAM and 256GB of storage. This version is only available in black. If you want the Ultraviolet or Sand Storm (with the distinctive micro-arc oxidation finish), you’ll have to upgrade to the $1,000 version, which has 16GB of RAM and 512GB of storage.
AT&T told the Federal Communications Commission that it has eliminated DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion) policies and programs, complying with demands from Chairman Brendan Carr.
The FCC boss has refused to approve mergers and other large transactions involving companies that don’t agree to drop support for DEI. On Monday, AT&T filed a letter disowning its former DEI initiatives in the FCC docket for its $1 billion purchase of US Cellular spectrum licenses.
“We have closely followed the recent Executive Orders, Supreme Court rulings, and guidance issued by the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and have adjusted our employment and business practices to ensure that they comply with all applicable laws and related requirements, including ending DEI-related policies as described below, not just in name but in substance,” AT&T’s letter to Carr said.
The U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) has given national banks the green light to hold crypto on their balance sheets for the purpose of paying blockchain network fees.
The guidance, issued in interpretive letter No. 1186 today, also allows banks to keep crypto on hand to test internal or third-party crypto platforms.
Blockchain networks require native tokens to process transactions. These fees, often called “gas fees,” are unavoidable.
The OCC said banks can hold the tokens they reasonably anticipate needing. This could include paying fees as part of crypto custody services or facilitating client transactions. The goal is to reduce reliance on third-party providers and lower operational risks.
“Paying network fees is a necessary part of doing business on blockchain networks,” the OCC said. “Holding crypto for this purpose is permissible when it supports otherwise lawful banking activities.”
‘Incidental’ banking uses
The guidance emphasizes that these activities are “incidental to the business of banking.” That phrase has weight in regulatory language. It means banks can do it legally, as long as the activity helps them serve customers or operate efficiently.
The OCC even drew parallels to historical banking practices, like holding foreign currency, banknotes, or shares in payment systems to facilitate transactions.
In other words, banks have always needed to hold certain assets to do business. Crypto is just the latest form.
Banks are expected to manage risks carefully. They must track operational, market, liquidity, cybersecurity, and legal risks. The amount of crypto held should remain minimal relative to the bank’s capital.
The letter comes under the leadership of Comptroller Jonathan Gould, a Trump appointee confirmed in July 2025. Under his tenure, the OCC has become more crypto-friendly. Earlier guidance allowed banks to act as nodes on blockchain networks, offer crypto custody services, and work with stablecoins.
Meanwhile, broader rules for stablecoin issuers under the GENIUS Act are still being drafted. But the OCC’s move signals that U.S. regulators are willing to let banks participate in crypto safely and efficiently.
As more banks explore digital assets, this guidance could accelerate adoption. It bridges traditional finance and blockchain, giving banks a clearer path to integrate crypto into everyday operations.
Earlier this year, the OCC issued guidance (Interpretive Letter 1184) allowing national banks and federal savings associations to offer cryptocurrency custody and trading services.
Essentially, banks can buy and sell digital assets on behalf of customers, outsource crypto activities to third parties, and provide related services like recordkeeping, tax reporting, and compliance.
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