World Liberty investors agree to limit influence over proposed trust bank

World Liberty Financial investors including Eric Trump have agreed to limit their influence over the management of the company’s proposed national trust bank as it moves through the federal approval process. Trump, World Liberty cofounder Zak Folkman and Emirati businessman Hamad Khalfan Ali Matar Alshamsi signed agreements known as passivity commitments on behalf of their respective companies, according to documents disclosed alongside the bank’s preliminary approval last week. The agreements commit the investors to avoiding influence over the bank’s management. World Liberty said the arrangements are intended to ensure certain stakeholders do not exercise control over the operations of World Liberty Trust Company. The commitments have attracted attention because of World Liberty’s connections to President Donald Trump’s family and foreign investors. Similar arrangements have previously been used by major institutional investors. Vanguard Group has pledged not to influence banks held in its investment portfolios, while China’s sovereign wealth fund entered a passivity agreement when acquiring a stake in Morgan Stanley. World Liberty said it intends to operate under continued feder...