World Liberty Financial Subsidiary Applies for Bank Charter for Stablecoin Operations

A subsidiary of World Liberty Financial, the decentralized finance company co-founded by members of the Trump family, has submitted an application to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) to establish a national trust bank purpose-built for stablecoin operations.

The charter will position the national trust bank, World Liberty Trust Company, National Association (WLTC), to issue and custody World Liberty Financial’s dollar-backed stablecoin, USD1, according to a Wednesday (Jan. 7) press release.

WLTC plans to serve institutional customers, including cryptocurrency exchanges, market makers and investment firms, and offer digital asset custody and conversion services that will enable holders of other stablecoins to shift to USD1, per the release.

The proposed president and chairman of WLTC, Zach Witkoff, said in the release that USD1 “grew faster in its first year than any other stablecoin” and that institutions are using it for cross-border payments, settlement and treasury operations.

“A national trust charter will allow us to bring issuance, custody and conversion together as a full-stack offering under one highly regulated entity,” Witkoff said.

World Liberty Financial announced on Dec. 25 that its USD1 stablecoin surpassed $3 billion in market capitalization within months of its launch.

Witkoff, who is co-founder and CEO of World Liberty Financial, said in a press release announcing the milestone that USD1 offers traditional institutions “a crypto-native but trusted instrument to reap the power of DeFi.”

“In less than a year, USD1 has been adopted as the stablecoin of choice for pioneering enterprises everywhere,” Witkoff said.

When announcing in March 2025 that it planned to launch the stablecoin, World Liberty Financial said USD1 would be redeemable 1:1 for the U.S. dollar; 100% backed by short-term U.S. government Treasurys, U.S. dollar deposits and other cash equivalents; and fully backed by a reserve portfolio audited by a third-party accounting firm.

“We’re offering a digital dollar stablecoin that sovereign investors and major institutions can confidently integrate into their strategies for seamless, secure cross-border transactions,” Witkoff said at the time in a press release.