Trump family's crypto business gets conditional approval to operate like a bank
Trump family's crypto business gets conditional approval to operate like a bank
Falyn StemplerSun, August 16, 2026 at 1:11 AM UTC
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A crypto firm with ties to the president just received conditional approval for a banking license -Credit:Bloomberg via Getty Images
Regulators appointed by President Donald Trump just issued conditional approval on Friday for a crypto firm with ties to the president to receive a banking license.
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) wrote in a letter published Friday that it decided to conditionally approve an application submitted by the World Liberty Trust Co. to obtain a national trust bank. However, the OCC said in the letter that the company will only get the official stamp of approval if it meets to its satisfaction “all preopening requirements," warning that it can “modify, suspend, or rescind” its current approval status.
World Liberty Trust Co. is a company that is 38% owned by "an entity affiliated with Donald J. Trump and certain of his family members," according to the company’s website.
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The bank charter provides a pathway for the trust company to deliver and obtain its USD1 stablecoin, a crypto token valued at $1 that would be regulated by the OCC. The company also proposed a bank that would have a headquarters in Bay Harbor Island, Florida.
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World Liberty Trust Co. President Zach Witkoff, son of special envoy Steve Witkoff, made a celebratory social media post in response to the decision. He wrote, Rigorous oversight, institutional controls and clear accountability are how stablecoins become trusted financial infrastructure. Our ambition is clear: to build the most trusted and widely used digital dollar in the world while strengthening the role of the U.S. dollar across the global economy.”
However, the move was subject to widespread criticism from opponents who have expressed concern about conflicts of interest.
Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), who serves as a ranking member of the Senate Banking Committee, previously warned the OCC that approving the application would be “the most brazen act of self-dealing our financial system has ever seen."
The $TRUMP meme crypto coin web page -Credit:NurPhoto via Getty Images
She was among more than 10 Democratic Senators pushing for a new law to prevent such a decision from being made again, which they argue is executive financial corruption. The bill, dubbed the Ending Presidential Corruption in Banking Act, came into public view on Friday and advocates for blocking federal regulators from being allowed to approve banks with ties to top federal officials, including the president and their family.
However, other top figures with ties to the case have also expressed concern about business ethics at play in the decision.
OCC Senior Deputy Comptroller Stephen Lybarger said Friday in response to the decision, "The Comptroller and staff acted consistently with their statutory duties and ethical obligations with respect to the Application. Approvals of applications such as this are made under authority delegated by the Comptroller to career staff.”
Source: “AOL Money”
