Circle moves closer to banking infrastructure

$CRCL has reportedly been approved to operate as a U.S. national trust bank.
That marks a major shift in the crypto industry’s relationship with traditional finance.
Crypto companies spent years trying to replace banks, but now some of the strongest players are applying to become regulated financial institutions.
For Circle, the bigger signal is that regulated banking rails may be the fastest path to bringing stablecoins and crypto infrastructure to mainstream users.
The companies that survive may not be the ones fighting the financial system, but the ones rebuilding it from inside the framework.