Federal Reserve Proposes Restricted Payment Accounts for Fintech and Crypto-Linked Banks

The Federal Reserve has proposed a new category of restricted payment accounts that would grant eligible fintech and crypto-linked banks limited access to its payment infrastructure.

The proposal, which was published as both a request for comment and a notice of proposed rulemaking, aims to provide clearing and settlement services to certain nonbank financial institutions while excluding tools such as interest on reserves, intraday credit, and the Fed's discount window.

Regional Federal Reserve Banks have been asked to pause Tier 3 master account decisions until the rulemaking process is expected to conclude by December 31, 2026.