Trump-Linked Crypto Trust Receives Preliminary Bank Charter Nod

What Just Happened

A crypto company with deep ties to the Trump family just got a big regulatory green light. That sounds bureaucratic, but it is a big deal for a few reasons.

First, the company's connection to the White House is hard to miss. World Liberty Financial, the company that sponsors the trust, says on its website that an entity tied to President Trump and some of his family members owns 38% of the business. The CEO of the trust company is Zach Witkoff, whose father, Steven Witkoff, serves as Trump's Middle East negotiator.

Second, the charter itself is permission to do something that could make a lot of money. It would allow World Liberty to issue stablecoins. Those are crypto coins that are supposed to stay pegged to a dollar, backed by low-risk assets like U.S. Treasurys.

Right now, a third-party company called BitGo handles part of that work. Doing it in-house would be much more profitable.

The approval is only conditional, meaning more steps remain before the process is complete. The company still needs to raise capital and meet other requirements.

How the Regulatory Landscape Shifted

The OCC has been a different agency under Trump than it was under Joe Biden. Since 2025, the OCC has logged 40 charter applications, according to agency data. That is a sharp increase from the previous administration, and many of those applications involve crypto companies.