A federal bank regulator has granted World Liberty Trust Co. a conditional bank charter, it announced Friday.
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the U.S. banking agency that grants federal charters, said in a letter posted to its website that World Liberty could operate fiduciary and other trust company-related activities as a national trust bank.
“This preliminary conditional approval is granted based on a thorough evaluation of all information available to the OCC, including the representations and commitments made in the application and by the Bank’s representatives,” the letter said.
Final approval won’t be granted until the company meets additional “preopening requirements,” the letter said.
According to the letter, World Liberty Trust Company will focus on services tied to World Liberty Financial’s USD1 stablecoin.
“The bank plans to issue USD1, a fiat currency-backed stablecoin, to institutional clients on a nationwide basis, assuming this role from BitGo Bank & Trust, National Association (BitGo), the current exclusive issuer and custodian for USD1,” the letter said. “The bank plans to provide its digital asset custody services as a fiduciary, primarily to USD1 customers and other institutional clients.”
World Liberty applied for the charter in January of this year, spurring opposition from Democratic lawmakers concerned by the fact that the broader World Liberty entities are owned in part by President Donald Trump, who named the regulators overseeing agencies including the OCC.
In May, Senator Elizabeth Warren challenged Comptroller of the Currency Jonathan Gould, accusing him of approving unqualified crypto banks for trust charters in a wave of companies seeking abilities to issue U.S. stablecoins and access the banking system without intermediaries. She said such institutions "want to evade the fundamental safeguards and obligations that come with being a bank."
After Warren had specifically asked that the OCC put a stop to the application process for Trump-tied World Liberty, Gould had told her that the agency would act without considering politics and proceed with the application on its normal timeline.
World Liberty and USD1 have specifically been under scrutiny after an Abu Dhabi investment firm bought a stake in World Liberty Financial early last year.
These issues were raised in public comments, according to Friday’s letter from the OCC, which went on to say that “career OCC staff reviewed the application for consistency” with the legal and regulatory requirements.
World Liberty Trust Company does not intend to become a federally insured depository institution or become a “bank” as defined by the Bank Holding Company Act, the letter said. It also does not intend to get access to a Federal Reserve master account.
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