The Trump family’s WLF has been approved by the U.S. OCC, becoming a national trust bank, and can proactively maintain its own stablecoin.

The cryptocurrency project supported by the Trump family, WLF, is reported to be approved by the U.S. OCC, officially becoming a national trust bank. This will enable it to directly issue stablecoins and has once again sparked controversy over conflicts of interest.

U.S. political media outlet NOTUS reported on Tuesday that the crypto project supported by the Trump family, World Liberty Financial (WLF), is expected to soon receive approval from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), officially becoming a "National Trust Bank."

The report states that OCC Director Jonathan Gould is about to announce the final decision on this application. Two anonymous former OCC employees told the media that the license application for World Liberty Financial has been "almost certain" to be approved; one insider even directly said that rejecting this application is "fantasy."

World Liberty Financial established a trust company in the U.S. in January of this year and subsequently submitted an application to the OCC. Prior to this, several crypto companies such as Circle, Ripple, and BitGo had already obtained OCC conditional approval for national trust bank licenses.

If granted a national trust bank license, World Liberty Financial will be able to issue and redeem its USD1 stablecoin, manage stablecoin reserve assets, provide digital asset custody services, and execute fiat and cryptocurrency exchanges and settlements.

In other words, World Liberty Financial will be able to bypass the current intermediary BitGo and directly issue stablecoins to U.S. consumers without relying on third-party financial institutions.

Trump Family Conflict of Interest Becomes Focus Again

However, the market’s attention is not only on regulatory progress. A bigger controversy lies in the fact that Donald Trump and his family hold substantial economic interests in World Liberty Financial, a project they co-founded just months before the 2024 U.S. presidential election.

According to publicly disclosed documents, up to 75% of the proceeds from the sale of the project’s native token WLFI will flow to a company controlled by Trump, "DT Marks DEFI LLC." In other words, as World Liberty Financial expands its business, the Trump family will directly benefit from the project’s revenue growth.

Reuters: Trump Family Profited Over $2.3 Billion from Cryptocurrency Industry

According to Reuters estimates, since Trump began his second term, the Trump family has profited over $2.3 billion through four different crypto projects, with World Liberty Financial contributing the largest share.

Earlier this year, the U.S. House of Representatives launched an investigation into World Liberty Financial’s stablecoin USD1, focusing on potential conflicts of interest and national security risks, triggered by a $500 million investment from the UAE and a $2 billion transaction related to Binance. The timing of these transactions coincides with the U.S. approval of AI chip exports.

At a Senate Banking Committee hearing in February, Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren questioned OCC Director Jonathan Gould, demanding he reject or at least delay the application for World Liberty Financial. Warren warned that approving the application would turn the OCC from Trump’s cheerleader into an accomplice in his corruption.

The White House countered these allegations, stating that Trump’s assets are managed by a trust overseen by his children, and there is no conflict of interest.

• This article is reprinted with permission from: BlockTalk
• Original title: "Trump’s Crypto Empire Strikes Again? Rumors Say World Liberty 'National Trust Bank' License Nears Approval"
• Original author: Block Sister Mel