Block Applies to Establish Builders Bank & Trust -- Update

By Elias Schisgall

Block wants to build a bank.

The financial technology company on Tuesday said it submitted an application to federal regulators to establish a federally regulated, uninsured national trust bank called Builders Bank & Trust.

The proposed bank charter "would establish a federal supervisory framework for certain custody and related activities currently offered by Block," the company said. It said the bank would provide custody and fiduciary services, including for stablecoins and bitcoin, but wouldn't accept deposits or make loans.

The establishment of the bank would help Block scale, the company said. The bank, if established, would be helmed by Lee Woolley as president and chief executive.

"Building on Block's experience in the digital asset space, our history with Square Financial Services, and the deep banking expertise of the team we've assembled, we believe Builders Bank is well positioned to support Block's broader vision of economic empowerment," said Woolley, currently Block's digital asset strategy lead.

Block's application is subject to approval by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, a federal banking regulator.

The move from Block comes as many financial technology and payment companies are eyeing entrances into banking.

PayPal in December applied to form a bank that would offer business loans and savings and accounts. PayPal's proposal was to form an industrial loan company, an entity that can lend money, hold insured deposits, and be owned by a non-financial institution.

Buy-now-pay-later company Sezzle also expressed interest in forming an ILC last year, but recently told investors that it would seek a national bank charter. Cryptocurrency platforms have also gotten in on the game, with crypto firms such as Ripple and Circle Internet Group receiving conditional approval by the OCC to form national trust banks late last year.

Circle said it got full approval from the OCC to establish a crypto-focused bank in July.

Write to Elias Schisgall at elias.schisgall@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

September 08, 2026 18:22 ET (22:22 GMT)