Trump-Linked World Liberty Wins Preliminary US Bank Charter for $4bn USD1 Stablecoin

World Liberty Trust Company would take over issuance and reserve custody of USD1 from BitGo, while also providing digital asset custody and stablecoin conversion services to institutional clients, according to the OCC's 14 Aug decision. The approval remains conditional and the bank cannot begin operating until it meets the regulator's pre-opening requirements. 

The decision brings federal banking oversight closer to one of the Trump family's most valuable crypto businesses. World Liberty Financial says DT Marks DEFI LLC, an entity majority-owned by President Trump, owns about 38% of the holding company that controls World Liberty. DT Marks DEFI and Trump family members together holds 22.5bn WLFI tokens, according to company disclosures. 

A separate Trump-linked entity, DT Marks SC LLC, is an indirect investor in the proposed bank and signed commitments with the OCC restricting its ability to influence the institution. The agreement, included in the regulator's decision, was signed by Eric Trump in his capacity as president of DT Marks SC. 

USD1 has grown to about $4bn in market capitalization since being introduced in March 2025, making it the fifth-largest stablecoin, according to DefiLlama data. That represents roughly 1.3% of the approximately $308bn global stablecoin market.  

USD1 moves in-house 

The charter would allow World Liberty to bring one of the most important parts of its stablecoin business in-house. 

BitGo currently serves as USD1's exclusive issuer and custodian. Once the new bank is established, World Liberty Trust plans to acquire the stablecoin's reserve assets and associated liabilities from BitGo and become its issuer nationwide. 

The proposed bank would also custody digital assets on behalf of institutional customers and allow custody clients to convert approved stablecoins into USD1. 

The OCC said those activities are permissible for a national trust bank, pointing to the GENIUS Act, which explicitly allows uninsured national banks to act as qualified payment stablecoin issuers. 

Trump ties scrutinized 

The application drew objections over World Liberty's ties to President Trump and his family.

The OCC said four commenters raised potential conflicts involving Trump and his family, as well as World Liberty co-founders Zach and Alex Witkoff, sons of Trump's special envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff, and UAE investors in the crypto firm. Three argued that the company could receive favourable treatment because the Comptroller of the Currency is a presidential appointee. 

The regulator rejected that argument, saying career OCC staff reviewed the application and would be responsible for supervising the bank. 

The approval is still subject to several conditions. The OCC required the bank to maintain at least $20mn of Tier 1 capital, hold additional liquid assets sufficient to cover 180 days of operating expenses and seek prior approval for significant changes to its business during its first three years. The decision follows a series of OCC approvals for crypto-focused trust banks over the past year, including Ripple, BitGo, Fidelity Digital Assets and Paxos.

The preliminary approval may be poorly timed for proponents of the CLARITY Act, which would establish a broad US regulatory framework for digital assets. After passing the House, the measure has stalled in the Senate, where ethics provisions tied to Trump's crypto interests remain one of the main obstacles to securing the 60 votes needed for passage. Trump disclosed more than $1.4bn in income from his family's crypto ventures in 2025. Senate Majority Leader John Thune has filed for a cloture vote on 15 Sep, giving the bill a narrow path forward after the August recess.