LevelField Financial, a Houston-based firm focused on bridging the gap between traditional banking and digital assets, has secured conditional approval from the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) to acquire Chicago-based Burling Bank. This marks a significant step for LevelField in its ambition to create a full-service bank offering both conventional and digital asset services.

The proposed acquisition is still subject to customary closing conditions, most notably the approval of the Federal Reserve Board for LevelField to become a bank holding company. If the deal is finalized, LevelField plans to rename the institution LevelField Bank. The company aims to close the transaction by the end of the year.

LevelField envisions LevelField Bank as a full-service, FDIC-insured bank providing a range of services to businesses and consumers across the United States and its territories. These services would include traditional banking products alongside digital asset services such as loans and credit cards collateralized by Bitcoin, Bitcoin rewards credit and debit cards, digital asset trading and custody, and bank account programs tailored for "underrepresented industries" like the digital asset sector.

Gene A. Grant II, CEO of LevelField Financial, stated that LevelField Bank is designed to meet the needs of the Bitcoin and digital asset community. He added that the company aims to be among the first full-service FDIC-insured banks to receive approval to offer digital asset banking services, delivering 24/7 banking functionality for customers, including historically underbanked businesses.

Burling Bank, established in 1989, brings to the table a foundation in personalized financial services. LevelField believes integrating Burling Bank into its platform will expand offerings to include Bitcoin-collateralized credit products, digital asset custody and trading, and real-time payment solutions in addition to traditional banking services.

This is not LevelField's first attempt to acquire Burling Bank. The company initially filed with the IDFPR in February 2023 but withdrew the filing in February 2024. According to Bloomberg, the initial filing was withdrawn following the collapse of crypto-friendly banks Silvergate Capital and Signature Bank. Burling Bank filed again in December 2024 to be acquired by LevelField.

The acquisition comes as top bank regulators have shifted towards embracing digital assets, particularly after the events of 2023. LevelField is backed by investors including Valinor Group, Castle Creek Capital, and Psalion VC. Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP is serving as legal advisor, and 3V Capital Partners, a division of CAVU Securities LLC, is the financial advisor for the transaction.