Access to Reserve Bank accounts and payment services: FRB guidelines

August 2022

Citing the uptick in “novel” charter types, such as cryptocurrency custody banks and others, authorized or under consideration by federal and state banking authorities, and related inquiries and requests from these institutions to access Reserve Bank accounts and services, the Federal Reserve Board has issued final guidelines for reviewing all requests for access to Reserve Bank accounts and payment services. A key feature of that review will be consideration of whether the request has the “potential to set a precedent that could affect the Federal Reserve’s ability to achieve its policy goals now or in the future.”