Trump family crypto firm wins bank approval from regulator under his administration

WASHINGTON, DC: The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the bank regulatory arm of the Treasury Department, provisionally granted a charter to form a national trust bank for World Liberty Trust Co, which is related to World Liberty Financial, a cryptocurrency firm partially owned by the family of President Donald Trump, a move that was denounced by Democrats over potential conflict of interest. 

World Liberty Financial, on its official website, claims it is owned 38% by "an entity affiliated with Donald J. Trump and certain of his family members." 

Trump earned about $600 million from the sale of World Liberty tokens and shares of the firm, making up the total earnings of $1.4 billion from crypto-related business in 2025. In all, World Liberty Financial has remitted $1.6 billion or more to the Trump family through April, according to Reuters calculations.

“President Trump is now the first president in history to approve, operate, and supervise his own bank,” Sen Elizabeth Warren said in a statement after the OCC approval on Friday, August 14.

Charter lets World Liberty bring stablecoin operations in-house

The charter, if ultimately approved at a later date, would allow World Liberty, through the newly created trust bank, to manage and hold assets on behalf of customers and settle payments faster. It does not generally permit deposit-taking or lending like traditional banks.

Hoping to capitalize on the Trump administration’s crypto-friendly stance, the industry has been knocking ​on the OCC’s door for such charters.

In a statement on Friday, the firm welcomed the conditional approval, calling it a "milestone" in its efforts to open the bank.

"A national trust bank brings USD1 issuance, custody, ​and reserve management together under OCC supervision, examined on the same standards that have governed banks for generations. We welcome continuous scrutiny from Federal regulators for many years to come," Zach Witkoff, son of Trump Middle East negotiator Steve Witkoff, World Liberty Trust president and chairman, said in a statement.

In the case of World Liberty, the charter would allow it to directly issue its USD1 stablecoin, as well as custody the US dollar assets backing it, both of ​which are now handled by a business partner, BitGo.

The firm also has ties to Trump's longtime allies

World Liberty Trust’s leadership is deeply intertwined with Trump's longtime allies, the Witkoff family.

Zach Witkoff is the son of Trump’s special diplomatic envoy, Steve Witkoff. The Witkoffs were among the co-founders of World Liberty Financial with Trump and his three sons in late 2024, with Zach currently serving as its CEO.

World Liberty is the most prominent among the Trump family’s stable of lucrative crypto ventures. Its stated vision is to democratize finance, allowing anyone to bypass a traditional banking system that the Trumps have characterized as restrictive and unfair.

Elizabeth Warren vows legislation, calls OCC approval 'most brazen act of self-dealing'

Some congressional Democrats have refused to support the Clarity Act, a bill to regulate the crypto industry, because it doesn’t impose strict limits on the president’s ability to profit from crypto ventures.

Warren had previously urged the OCC not to approve World Liberty’s application unless the president divested of his interests in the company.

“This is the most brazen act of self-dealing our financial system has ever seen, and Congress cannot allow it to stand. I’m introducing a bill to stop this kind of unprecedented corruption,” Warren wrote on X (formerly Twitter).

Warren said she and several colleagues would introduce legislation to prevent presidents and senior government officials from owning or controlling banks.