OCC Gives Conditional, Preliminary OK to Trump-Linked Trust Bank for USD1 Stablecoin

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) has issued a preliminary, conditional approval for a proposed national trust bank connected to World Liberty Financial, a crypto venture that says it is partly owned by an entity affiliated with former President Donald J. Trump and members of his family. According to an OCC letter posted Friday, the agency is allowing World Liberty Financial to move forward with plans to establish World Liberty Trust Company, National Association, based in Bay Harbor Islands, Florida. The proposed trust would, in part, issue and administer the USD1 stablecoin, including minting and redeeming tokens, holding reserves to support the coin, and providing digital-asset custody and related services for institutional clients. World Liberty Financial says 38% of the business is owned by "an entity affiliated with Donald J. Trump and certain of his family members." Zach Witkoff, president and chairman of the proposed trust and co-founder and CEO of World Liberty Financial, described the OCC's decision as a "milestone." He said the structure would place USD1 issuance, custody and reserve management under OCC supervision, and wrote on X that the goal is to build "the most trusted and widely used digital dollar in the world" while bolstering the U.S. dollar's role globally. The company's leadership also includes Eric Trump, recently named an ALT5 board director, and Donald Trump Jr., listed as an ALT5 board observer. Witkoff is the son of Steve Witkoff, a U.S. special envoy. The OCC stressed the approval does not allow the trust to begin operating. World Liberty Trust must first satisfy additional conditions and obtain final approval from the regulator. In its letter, the agency also addressed public objections ranging from potential conflicts of interest tied to the Trump family and foreign investment to questions about stablecoin oversight, FDIC insurance, and allegations of regulatory favoritism. The OCC said career staff evaluated the application under established statutory, regulatory and policy standards and did not find the objections sufficient grounds to deny the filing. A federally chartered trust bank built around a dollar-pegged stablecoin would be a prominent test case for how traditional bank charters mesh with the fast-developing market for tokenized dollars. The OCC noted that newly formed banks can promote innovation and competition, signaling that regulators may view new entrants as part of a modern banking landscape. World Liberty Trust must meet the OCC's conditions before it can open. The application's final review is expected to draw continued attention from industry participants, policymakers and the broader crypto market. (Reporting contributed by Reuters.)