Sony Bank has secured conditional approval from the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency to establish Connectia Trust, a national trust bank focused on digital assets. The approval moves Sony Financial Group closer to launching a U.S. dollar-backed stablecoin through its planned American subsidiary. Sony Bank announced that Connectia Trust will launch this month as a wholly owned subsidiary with initial capital totaling $40 million.
The company expects Connectia Trust to begin operations during 2027 after receiving final regulatory approval from the OCC. Sony Bank also confirmed that the trust company will support the long-term expansion of Sony Financial Group’s digital asset strategy. The lender has not yet appointed a representative to lead the new trust institution.
Sony originally announced its stablecoin initiative after applying for an OCC national trust charter through Connectia Trust during the previous year. The proposed stablecoin will maintain a one-to-one peg with the U.S. dollar throughout its circulation. Sony intends to use the digital currency across its ecosystem for payments involving video games, anime, subscriptions, and other digital entertainment services. Earlier reports also indicated that American customers will become the primary users following commercial launch.
OCC Trust Charter Supports Stablecoin Expansion
The OCC’s conditional approval allows Sony to continue preparing Connectia Trust but does not authorize immediate operations. The trust company must satisfy all remaining regulatory requirements before beginning business as a federally supervised national trust bank.
Sony joins several digital asset companies pursuing federal trust bank status in the United States. Previous conditional approvals have gone to Ripple, Circle, BitGo, Fidelity Digital Assets, and Paxos as stablecoin competition continues expanding. Peter Thiel-backed Augustus also received conditional approval this year to establish a national bank supporting artificial intelligence payments and stablecoin settlement services.
National trust bank charters allow companies to provide digital asset custody, reserve management, and stablecoin issuance under federal supervision. However, these institutions cannot accept traditional cash deposits or provide commercial lending services.
The OCC’s charter approvals continue attracting political attention. Senator Elizabeth Warren has argued that the regulator has granted national trust charters to companies that she believes do not qualify under the National Bank Act. Despite ongoing regulatory debate, companies continue pursuing trust bank licenses as stablecoin adoption expands across financial services and digital payment markets.
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