ICBA: Advocacy Campaign Launched to Protect Main Street Communities from Crypto Threat
New ad highlights critical role community banks serve across America The Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA) today announced a new campaign to protect local communities and consumers from the risks posed by the accelerated adoption of crypto products and services that lack the same level of regulation and consumer protection as the banking sector. “Community banks are the backbone…
ABA: New Survey Shows Americans Strongly Support Prohibiting Crypto Companies from Offering Yield-Like Rewards for Holding Stablecoin
As Senate prepares to consider digital asset legislation, national survey shows Americans support rules that protect the bank deposits that drive local lending and economic activity As the U.S. Senate prepares to consider the Clarity Act creating the first-ever rules for digital assets like stablecoin, a new survey conducted by Morning Consult on behalf of…
ICBA: ICBA Urges OCC to Rescind Approval for Coinbase’s National Trust Charter Following Criminal Lawsuit
The Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA) today called on the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency to rescind or suspend its conditional approval of Coinbase Global’s application for a national trust bank charter until criminal allegations against Coinbase’s wholly owned subsidiary, Coinbase Financial Markets Inc., are resolved. This follows the New York State Attorney General’s…
ICBA: Statement Issued on Executive Order on Financial Technology Regulation
Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA) President and CEO Rebeca Romero Rainey released the following statement on President Donald Trump’s executive order directing the Federal Reserve to evaluate the legal, regulatory, and policy frameworks governing access to Reserve Bank payment accounts and payment services by uninsured depository institutions and non-bank financial companies. “Policymakers must recognize the…
Banking Trades Issue Statement on Senate Banking Committee Vote to Advance Clarity Act
Following today’s Senate Banking Committee vote to advance the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, the American Bankers Association, Bank Policy Institute, Consumer Bankers Association, Financial Services Forum, Independent Community Bankers of America and National Bankers Association issued the following joint statement: “Today’s Senate Banking Committee vote on the Clarity Act marks an important step in…
ICBA: ICBA Raises Concerns Over Kraken Pursuit of National Trust Charter
The Independent Community Bankers of America® today expressed strong concern after crypto exchange parent company Payward Inc., operator of Kraken, applied for a national trust bank charter from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC). The application follows Kraken’s previously granted accessopens in a new tabfor a Federal Reserve master account and ongoing efforts…
ABA: Banking Trade Groups Urge Senate Banking Leaders to Strengthen Stablecoin Yield Guardrails to Prevent Deposit Flight
A coalition of financial trade associations representing banks of all sizes today urged Senate Banking Committee leaders to make important technical refinements to proposed payment stablecoin yield language in the CLARITY Act, warning that allowing interest like yield on stablecoins could weaken bank deposits and reduce credit available to consumers, small businesses and farmers. In…
ABA: ABA & State Bankers Associations Urge OCC to Close Yield Loopholes in Stablecoin Rule
The American Bankers Association, joined by 52 state bankers associations, today submitted a comment letter to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency urging the agency to strengthen its proposed rule implementing the GENIUS Act to ensure a meaningful and enforceable prohibition on interest and yield payments tied to stablecoins. Separately, ABA also submitted its own detailed comment…
ICBA: New Polling Shows Dominant Support for Community Banks Amid Debate Over Digital Assets
With community bankers gathering in Washington this week for the Independent Community Bankers of America’s 2026 ICBA Capital Summit, new polling data show that Americans support community banks and want to ensure the industry is not harmed in the current debate over digital assets policy. “As community bankers representing local communities nationwide gather in Washington…
ICBA: ICBA to Congress: Ensure Digital Assets Legislation Bars Interest on Payment Stablecoins to Avoid Harming Local Economies
As Congress looks to advance digital asset market structure legislation, the Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA) today is calling on lawmakers to ensure the measure addresses concerns with the harmful impact on local economies of allowing crypto exchanges and other intermediaries to pay interest or yield on payment stablecoins. A recent Council of Economic…