Fed Seeks Comment on ‘Skinny’ Accounts; MoneyGram Joins Tempo

The Federal Reserve on Wednesday asked for public comment on a draft framework to create limited “skinny” payment accounts for nonbank fintech and crypto-linked firms. The proposal was issued as a request for comment and a notice of proposed rulemaking and refers to “skinny master accounts.” The Fed also urged regional Reserve Banks to pause decisions on Tier 3 account-access requests while it completes the rulemaking process, which staff expect to finish by Dec. 31, 2026. The Fed said, “The temporary pause will allow the Federal Reserve to solicit and consider public input on payment accounts and to promote consistent implementation.”

Under the draft, legally eligible fintech firms and banks linked to crypto could receive narrower access to the Fed’s payment rails without the supervisory backstops that apply to traditional depository institutions. The proposal follows an executive order from President Donald Trump calling for broader fintech and digital asset integration and reflects the Fed’s effort to balance access with safety and operational concerns.

Kate Fraher, Silvergate’s former chief risk officer, spoke publicly on Wednesday about her 2024 settlement with the Securities and Exchange Commission. She said she chose to settle to avoid a multi-year court fight after the SEC alleged she misled investors about anti-money-laundering controls and the bank’s monitoring of crypto customers. Fraher contended that no financial regulator proved Silvergate’s anti-money-laundering controls had failed and that settling allowed her to move forward.

Fraher described personal pressure during the enforcement process, saying she was “personally de-banked and had credit lines summarily closed-an aggressive tactic used to disrupt daily life and force compliance.” Under the settlement, she agreed to a $250,000 civil penalty and is barred from serving as a company executive or board director for five years. She said the SEC rescinded a long-standing gag rule earlier this week, permitting her to speak publicly for the first time since the settlement.

Fraher addressed Silvergate’s wind-down after the collapse of the crypto exchange FTX in November 2022. She said the bank experienced an approximately 70% deposit run but described the decision to wind down as the result of broader regulatory and administrative pressure that made operating the business infeasible, rather than solely market volatility.

In a separate development, MoneyGram announced a partnership with the blockchain network Tempo to support stablecoin settlement and to help validate remittance transactions. Tempo is a Layer 1 network incubated by Stripe and Paradigm that focuses on stablecoin transfers and cross-border payments. MoneyGram said Stripe will settle transactions to MoneyGram using Tempo’s infrastructure.

MoneyGram will serve as an “anchor remittance validator” on Tempo, a role that involves validating transactions and helping operate the network. Visa and other firms are listed as early validators on the network.

Regulators, banks and payment firms are evaluating how to integrate digital assets and new payment technologies into existing systems while managing risks tied to oversight, compliance and financial stability. The Fed’s request for comment opens a public consultation on how limited account access might be structured, and the MoneyGram-Tempo partnership tests stablecoin rails for cross-border remittances.