Bank charter
Definition
A bank charter is the official authorization that creates a bank as a chartered institution. It is not an FDIC certificate number and not an NCUA charter number.
In plain English
A bank exists because a chartering authority granted it a charter. That legal identity is the bank charter. Deposit-insurance numbers are separate. FDIC certificate numbers identify insured banks for insurance records. NCUA charter numbers identify credit unions.
Technical definition
OCC licensing material explains the granting of a national bank charter. That official chartering identity is PRIMARY for this page and is not the FDIC or NCUA identifier already published.
Why it matters
US Mortgage Index already publishes FDIC and NCUA identity numbers. Readers need the charter concept kept separate from those numbers.
Example
A national bank can appear in OCC chartering records and, separately, in FDIC records under a certificate number. Those records answer different questions.
Commonly confused with
Related terms
Sources reviewed
Comptroller's Licensing Manual: Charters
ObservedSeptember 6, 2026
Important note
A bank charter is not an FDIC certificate number or an NCUA charter number.