Sony Bank received conditional approval from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency to establ

Sony Bank received conditional approval from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency to establish a trust bank

Sony Bank, a subsidiary of Sony Financial Group, received conditional approval from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency on July 2 to establish a national trust bank in the United States. The entity, called Connectia Trust, National Association, will be headquartered in New York with a registered capital of US$40 million. Sony Bank will wholly hold the subsidiary.

Sony Financial Group disclosed the approval in a statement on July 6. Connectia Trust plans to issue and manage dollar-denominated stablecoins. Sony Bank said it will not initiate any stablecoin issuance or other business activities until it obtains final approval from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. The company expects the subsidiary to begin operations in 2027. A representative for Connectia Trust has not yet been determined.

Sony plans to promote stablecoin payments on its digital platforms

Sony Bank previously told the Nihon Keizai Shimbun that the stablecoin aims to provide U.S. customers with a way to pay for digital content in the Sony ecosystem, which includes the PlayStation gaming platform and anime streaming service Crunchyroll. Sony Bank described the token as a means to reduce credit card payment fees in digital transactions. No Sony brand has publicly promised to accept the stablecoin.

The move is based on Sony\'s existing blockchain business. The company launched the Ethereum Layer 2 network Soneium in early 2025. Later that year, Sony\'s blockchain partner Startale issued another stablecoin anchored to the U.S. dollar on the network. For Connectia Trust, Sony Bank has hired infrastructure company Bastion to handle issuance, reserve management and custody. In March this year, Sony Bank also signed a memorandum of understanding with JPYC Inc. to study whether yen-anchored stablecoins can interface with banks \'deposit infrastructure.

Sony enters crowded tracks applying for approval from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency

Sony enters a fast-growing stablecoin market. According to data from the Visa Chain dashboard, transaction volume reached $1.79 trillion in June, a 63% increase from May and more than double the same period last year. According to DeFiLlama data, the total market value of stablecoins exceeds US$308 billion, of which Tether and USD Coin together account for approximately US$250 billion.

Sony is one of several companies seeking to obtain a federal charter of trust to conduct stablecoin business. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency conditionally approved Circle, Ripple, BitGo, Fidelity Digital Assets and Paxos in December. Applications are continuing, including Trump-related World Liberty Financial and Stripe\'s Bridge. The National Trust Charter allows companies to custody assets, manage stablecoin reserves and issue tokens under federal supervision, but prohibits them from taking deposits or making loans.

The application was opposed before receiving conditional approval. The Independent Community Bankers Association of America sent a letter to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency in November urging it to reject Connectia Trust\'s charter, arguing that the architecture would allow Sony to issue deposit-like tokens without having to meet insurance requirements that apply to traditional banks.

Senator Elizabeth Warren also separately proposed that the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency is issuing charters to companies that do not meet the requirements of the National Banking Act. Cody Caben, CEO of Digital Chamber, a trade group that represents more than 250 crypto companies, refuted in May, saying the argument misinterpreted the regulations and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency\'s established charter authority.

The broader regulatory landscape of stablecoin the United States is still in flux. The GENIUS Act establishes a federal framework covering payments for stablecoin reserves and disclosure requirements. Another bill, called the CLARITY Act, passed the Senate Banking Committee in May but was opposed by a majority of Democrats and the banking industry. Galaxy Digital has reduced the chance of the CLARITY Act becoming law in 2026 to 50%, citing limited meeting time before the Senate is scheduled to begin a four-week recess on August 8. The House will hold a hearing on the bill on July 17.