(1) A regulated banking institution that provides services for cryptocurrency customers. For example, a crypto bank may exchange fiat from a centralized crypto exchange.
(2) A synonym sometimes used for a centralized crypto exchange because such services require ID and approval, which in some cases can be very extensive (see
KYC). A crypto bank is contrasted with a "money protocol," which runs on a decentralized crypto exchange (DeX) that anyone can use. See
crypto exchange and
crypto banking.