Cryptocurrency company LevelField has received approval from Illinois to acquire Burling Bank

According to Bloomberg, LevelField Financial Inc. has announced that it has received approval from the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation to acquire Burling Bank, headquartered in Chicago, and transform it into a full-service bank offering cryptocurrency services. This transaction is still subject to approval by the Federal Reserve Board.

According to CEO Gene Grant II, LevelField aims to complete the transaction by the end of the year after obtaining regulatory approval and meeting other closing conditions. According to the application documents submitted to the Federal Reserve, LevelField has agreed to spend up to $70 million to acquire the bank. This marks the second attempt by both parties to merge.

As early as the beginning of 2023, just before the collapse of Silvergate and Signature Bank, LevelField attempted to acquire Burling Bank. A year later, they withdrew their acquisition proposal, but after Donald Trump's election as President of the United States in December 2024, they made another attempt to acquire it.

The merged entity will retain Burling Bank's primary community banking operations, with a new focus on providing deposit accounts, loans, and custody services tailored for digital assets, such as secured term loans and credit cards backed by Bitcoin or Ethereum.