World Liberty Financial receives preliminary approval for national bank trust charter

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency has granted preliminary conditional approval for World Liberty Trust Company, National Association, to organize as a national trust bank. The decision, issued on August 14, gives the Trump family-linked crypto venture a federal regulatory stamp that most digital asset companies can only dream about. It also lands squarely in the middle of a Senate fight over the CLARITY Act, legislation designed to regulate crypto-related profits for government officials and their affiliates. What the charter actually allows The approval caps a 221-day review process that began when World Liberty Financial submitted its application in January 2026. If finalized, the charter would let World Liberty Trust directly issue, redeem, and custody its USD1 stablecoin under federal oversight. That’s a meaningful upgrade from the current setup. USD1 is presently managed by BitGo, the well-known crypto custodian. Moving it under OCC supervision would place reserve management activities directly under a federal regulator’s watch. There are clear limits to what the charter permits, though. World Liberty Trust would not be authorized to accept insured deposits or make...