A Texas Bank Takes a Bold Step into Crypto

A small bank in Texas has made a surprising move into the world of cryptocurrency. Monet Bank, once a community bank, is now calling itself an "infrastructure bank" for digital assets. This shift is part of a bigger trend where traditional banks are starting to embrace crypto. Monet Bank is not a giant. It has less than $6 billion in assets and just over $1 billion in capital. It started as Beal Savings Bank in 1988 and has gone through a couple of name changes recently. The bank is regulated by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and has six branches. The owner of Monet Bank is Andy Beal, a well-known poker player and a big supporter of former President Donald Trump. He funded his own political action committee during Trump's 2016 campaign. This move by Monet Bank is not alone. Other banks are also starting to focus on the crypto industry. For example, Erebor Bank recently got a conditional charter from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. And just this week, former executives from Signature Bank launched N3XT, a bank that will use a private blockchain for instant payments. The shift in the banking world comes as federal regulators are changing their approach to crypto. Since Trump's presidency, regulators have been more open to letting banks work with the crypto industry. The FDIC's acting chair, Travis Hill, even mentioned that new rules for the crypto industry might be coming soon. It's not clear why Monet Bank decided to make this move. The company did not respond to a request for comment.