The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency has granted Erebor preliminary approval, it said Wednesday.
Federal regulators have granted preliminary approval to Erebor Bank, the crypto- and tech-focused financial outfit cofounded by Palmer Luckey and backed by Peter Thiel and Joe Lonsdale.
„I am committed to a dynamic and diverse federal banking system, and our decision today is a first but important step in living up to that commitment“, Jonathan Gould, the Comptroller of the Currency, said on Wednesday.
The green light is a necessary step toward opening. Erebor is the first bank to receive such approval since Gould was sworn in in July.
Luckey, who also co-founded autonomous weapons manufacturer Anduril Industries, helped start Erebor earlier this year. Thiel’s Founders Fund and Lonsdale’s 8VC have invested in the startup, valuing it at at least $2 billion, Business Insider reported in July.
A lawyer for Erebor didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
Before it can open, Erebor needs approval from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation; it applied for that in July. The median processing time for those applications is about nine and a half months.
