Mercury Plans to Establish Mercury Bank, N.A.
Mercury, a leading US fintech company, has recently received conditional approval from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) to establish Mercury Bank, N.A. This marks a significant milestone for the company as it transitions into the bank organization phase. However, the journey is not yet complete as Mercury must still meet the remaining conditions and secure final authorization from the OCC. You can find more details about this development here.
Steps Ahead for Mercury
Mercury’s pursuit of a national bank charter does not only involve the OCC. Approvals from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and the Federal Reserve are also pending. The company first announced its intention to acquire a national bank charter in December 2025, submitted alongside a request for federal deposit insurance with the FDIC.
Reflecting Years of Effort
In a statement, Mercury emphasized that the conditional approval from the OCC is a testament to years of hard work in building a financial platform “worthy of direct regulation.” The company is hopeful that a fully operational bank will enable services that customers cannot currently access. These include Zelle embedded in Mercury Bank accounts for person-to-person and business payments.
Expanding Services for Customers
Mercury’s plans for an expanded suite of lending products for businesses and individuals, as well as deeper payments infrastructure for faster money movement and more direct control over payment processing, indicate the company’s commitment to enhancing customer experience. With over 300,000 businesses and individuals served, generating more than $650m in annualized revenue, Mercury has a solid customer base to build upon. Impressively, the firm has also reported four years of GAAP profitability.
Mercury’s Impact on US Startups
In 2025, Mercury revealed that one in three US startups banks with them. This indicates the company’s significant influence within the tech startup category, even though 73% of their new customers that year came from outside this sector.
A Bank Built for Founders
Immad Akhund, co-founder and CEO of Mercury, emphasized that the charter application was driven by the desire to create a bank tailored to the needs of the country’s best founders. He stated, “Our customers have been asking for Zelle, for expanded lending, for payment infrastructure we actually control. We couldn’t give them those things without a bank charter. Those gaps have always bothered me. This is how we start closing them.”
The Future of Mercury
Mercury Bank, N.A. will be headquartered in Utah, under the leadership of Jon Auxier, who will serve as the chief executive and president. Auxier brings extensive experience to his new roles, having previously served as CFO of SoFi Bank and corporate treasurer at SoFi Technologies. He has also held senior roles at Goldman Sachs, Green Dot, and a global accounting firm.
Mercury Technologies, Inc. plans to file separately with the Federal Reserve to become a bank holding company. Following the OCC’s conditional approval, Mercury will continue working with regulators to meet the remaining requirements.
