The U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) officially announced the launch of its Office of Financial Technology on March 30. The new office will broaden the OCC's technology focus and help it keep pace with rapid developments in the banking industry, it said.
The Office of FinTech will open on April 10 under the leadership of Prashant Bhardwaj, who will serve as the OCC's deputy comptroller and chief fintech officer. Bhardwaj is a new employee at the agency. According to the announcement: “Mr. Bhardwaj will lead the team responsible for analyzing, assessing and discussing fintech-related trends, emerging and potential risks, and potential implications for OCC regulation.” The OCC, an independent bureau of the Treasury Department, has been under the leadership of acting Comptroller of the Currency Michael Hsu since May 2021. The bureau oversees "national" commercial banks in the United States that are members of the Federal Reserve and insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.
The OCC has repeatedly warned banks not to deal with cryptocurrencies, notably in its letter of explanation. Additionally, it was one of three banking regulators that issued a joint statement earlier this year warning banks about the risks of cryptocurrencies.
“Banking institutions are neither prohibited nor encouraged to provide banking services to any particular class or type of customer,” the OCC wrote, but holding crypto assets as principal “is likely not consistent with safe and sound banking practice” Fed and FDIC .
