The U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) has granted conditional approval for World Liberty Trust Company to organize a national trust bank, clearing the way for the Trump-linked institution to issue the USD1 stablecoin and provide digital asset custody under direct federal supervision once final regulatory requirements are met.

The August 14 decision advances World Liberty Financial's plan to bring USD1 issuance and custody under direct federal oversight rather than relying on partners. USD1 issuance and custody are set to move from BitGo after final regulatory approval arrives. Political scrutiny of the charter continues, with Democratic lawmakers questioning the approval of a bank tied to President Donald Trump's family.

OCC Clears Path for World Liberty Trust Bank

The OCC approved World Liberty Trust Company's national trust bank application conditionally on August 14, as announced in a company press release. The proposed institution will operate from Bay Harbor Islands, Florida, after completing the pre-opening conditions required before final authorization is granted.

Unlike traditional commercial banks, the trust institution cannot accept customer deposits or provide conventional lending services under its proposed structure. Instead, it will focus on stablecoin issuance, reserve management, digital asset custody, and settlement services for institutional customers across the country. The trust-company route is an established path for digital asset firms — the OCC has previously granted national trust charters to crypto custody providers such as Anchorage Digital and Paxos — though those approvals predated the current wave of stablecoin-focused applications.

World Liberty Financial submitted the charter application in January, joining cryptocurrency companies that have increasingly pursued federal trust bank licenses for nationwide operations. That push accelerated after the GENIUS Act, the July 2025 law that created the first comprehensive federal framework for payment stablecoins, including requirements that issuers back tokens with high-quality liquid reserves and disclose them regularly — standards that a federally chartered institution operating under direct OCC supervision is positioned to satisfy. BitGo currently manages USD1 issuance and custody, although World Liberty intends to assume those responsibilities after receiving full regulatory approval.

World Liberty Trust CEO Zach Witkoff described the approval as a significant milestone for the company's stablecoin ambitions under federal supervision, writing on X that combining issuance, custody, and reserve management within one regulated institution would strengthen oversight and long-term accountability for USD1.

Today, @worldlibertyfi received conditional approval from the OCC to organize World Liberty Trust Company, N.A., a national trust bank designed from the ground up to issue $USD1 and provide custody under federal supervision. Rigorous oversight, institutional controls and clear…

— Zach Witkoff (@ZachWitkoff), August 14, 2026

The OCC also required the company to maintain at least $20 million in capital before opening and to appoint qualified audit leadership.

USD1 Expansion Faces Continued Political Scrutiny

The regulator emphasized that approval remains conditional until World Liberty satisfies operational, governance, and compliance requirements before launching nationwide services officially. The OCC said career staff reviewed the application under established legal standards and rejected objections as sufficient grounds for denial.

The agency also addressed concerns regarding foreign investors, stating they would not control the proposed bank's operations or governance decisions. Several investors signed passivity agreements, including Eric Trump through a Trump family-affiliated investment vehicle connected with the broader business.

Democratic lawmakers continue questioning whether the charter creates conflicts because President Donald Trump appointed Comptroller Jonathan Gould before approval occurred. The OCC responded that Gould and agency staff fulfilled their statutory duties while nonpolitical examiners would oversee ongoing supervision afterward. Their objections extend broader Democratic scrutiny of the Trump family's cryptocurrency ventures, which has previously included calls for investigations into potential conflicts of interest.

World Liberty Financial, launched with involvement from the Trump family and the Witkoff family, has promoted USD1 as a dollar-backed stablecoin. Since launching in March 2025, USD1 has grown to roughly $4 billion in market capitalization, making it among the largest stablecoins, though it remains far smaller than market leaders Tether (USDT) and Circle's USDC.

The approval places World Liberty alongside Ripple, Circle, and other cryptocurrency firms seeking federal trust bank structures for institutional digital asset services.