August 27, 22:50
Foreign and Trump entities reportedly hold stakes in Trump's $4 billion stablecoin bank
The Foreign Owners Behind Trump's $4 Billion Stablecoin Bank
Beincrypto
The OCC cleared World Liberty Trust Company on August 14 to issue and redeem USD1. The bank is owned by Delaware company WLTC Holdings. WLTC Holdings has a shareholder split that copies World Liberty Financial, the Trump family crypto venture behind USD1. The Wall Street Journal reported that an entity tied to Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed al Nahyan holds 49% of the bank. A Trump family entity holds 38%. Neither figure appears in the OCC's public decision. The figures come from people familiar with the matter. Tahnoon runs the United Arab Emirates' national security service. Tahnoon is the brother of the UAE president. Investors associated with Tahnoon invested $500 million in World Liberty in January 2025. The deal closed four days before the inauguration. The OCC set the bank's minimum tier 1 capital at $20 million. Half of that capital must be held in liquid assets. USD1 has a market value near $4.1 billion. USD1 ranks 24th among all crypto assets, according to BeInCrypto data. USD1 held its dollar peg at $0.9997. Reserves back USD1, not the bank's capital. The bank needs about $1 of its own capital for every $205 of USD1 outstanding. Three-month Treasury bills yielded 3.79% on August 26. That rate would generate about $155 million a year on $4.1 billion. World Liberty estimated annual income of $150 million. BitGo currently issues USD1 and keeps part of the interest. The new bank plans to take over the reserves. USD1 is not a deposit and has no FDIC coverage. The OCC received passivity commitments from DT Marks SC LLC, StringZ Holding RSC, and AMGUS LLC. Eric F. Trump signed the commitment for DT Marks SC LLC. Hamad Khlfan Ali Matar Alshamsi signed the commitment for StringZ Holding RSC. Zachary Folkman signed the commitment for AMGUS LLC. The commitments prohibit board seats and influence over dividends, pricing, personnel, and operations. Investors must transfer voting stakes above 9.9% to management by proxy. Corporate Decision #1385 says the investors were not considered principal shareholders of the bank. The Wall Street Journal called the commitments the second set demanded since Trump returned to office. That count came from the newspaper's review and is not a public tally. Senator Elizabeth Warren urged Comptroller Jonathan Gould to delay the charter review until the president divests. Warren said any financial connection between Tahnoon and a national bank charter applicant owned by the president should be disqualifying because of national security concerns. Washington was weighing UAE access to advanced American chips while G42 waited for supplies. Senate Democrats had already demanded congressional hearings. World Liberty said career OCC staff reviewed the application. The White House reportedly denied any conflict. The bank cannot open yet. It has 12 months to raise capital and 18 months from August 14 to start business. A final examination remains before the bank can open.
This content is an AI-generated summary/analysis for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.