US Grants Trump-Linked World Liberty Conditional Bank Charter for $4 Billion Stablecoin
Updated
Updated · Financial Times · Aug 15
US Grants Trump-Linked World Liberty Conditional Bank Charter for $4 Billion Stablecoin
3 articles · Updated · Financial Times · Aug 15
Summary
Friday’s conditional OCC approval gives World Liberty Financial a national trust bank charter, clearing a path to expand its USD1 stablecoin and digital-asset custody business under federal supervision.
WLF still cannot make loans or take direct deposits, and must stick to its submitted business plan while meeting capital and liquidity requirements before operating as a trust bank.
USD1 has already grown to more than $4 billion in circulation, and WLF says the charter would combine issuance, custody and reserve management inside one OCC-regulated entity.
Elizabeth Warren called the approval a “brazen act of self-dealing” as Democrats press for an ethics clause in crypto legislation to bar top officials from profiting from the sector while in office.
The decision fits Trump-era efforts to open bank licensing to more crypto and fintech groups after the president signed stablecoin legislation last year and reported more than $1.16 billion in crypto-related income.