Trump-Backed Stablecoin Firm Set for Federal Banking Charter

World Liberty Financial (WLFI) is on track to receive a federal banking charter from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), according to reports. This would allow WLFI, a stablecoin platform co-founded by President Trump and his sons, to issue its USD1 stablecoin directly to retail users without needing a middleman firm like BitGo.

WLFI's CEO, Zach Witkoff, said the charter would make US dollars more accessible and faster than ever before. However, critics point out that this could create conflicts of interest, given Trump's 70% stake in an LLC that controls 38% of the holding company that owns WLFI.

The OCC has already greenlit some dozen crypto companies under its current head, Jonathan Gould, who has compressed what were once two-year waits down to a 120-day goal. This suggests that approval for WLFI is essentially a foregone conclusion.

WLFI's defense is that Trump stepped back from any operational role at the firm upon entering office and that charter approval would subject it to tighter regulatory scrutiny via mandatory OCC oversight and AML compliance.