The application follows stablecoin issuer Circle's similar effort to expand crypto services and move into federal regulatory oversight.

(Reuters) -Crypto firm Ripple is applying for a national bank charter in the U.S., its CEO Brad Garlinghouse wrote in a social media post on Wednesday, shortly after a similar step by stablecoin giant Circle.

A bank charter has several advantages for the companies, said Jeff Cantwell of Seaport Research Partners, not least of which is fiduciary control of their own assets. Circle, for