World Liberty Financial (WLFI) has filed a de novo application with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) to establish a national trust bank, a move that would place its $3.3 billion stablecoin, USD1, under direct federal oversight. The application, submitted Jan. 7 by subsidiary WLTC Holdings LLC, seeks to charter the "World Liberty Trust Company, National Association."
The governance token, WLFI, held steady at $0.17 following the announcement, valuing the protocol at approximately $4.7 billion.
The Federal Pivot
If approved, World Liberty would bypass third-party issuers to directly custody, issue, and convert USD1. The proposed entity aims to serve institutional clients, market makers, exchanges, and funds, needing a regulated counterparty for high-volume settlement. This vertical integration mirrors the "full-stack" model currently monopolized by traditional banks.
According to the filing, the trust bank would operate under the framework of the GENIUS Act, signed into law in July 2025. This legislation incentivizes crypto-native firms to seek federal charters rather than state-level licenses, standardizing anti-money laundering (AML) and custody protocols across the sector.
"A national trust charter will allow us to bring issuance, custody, and conversion together as a full-stack offering under one highly regulated entity," said Mack McCain, General Counsel for World Liberty Financial.
Institutional Context
The application arrives as the OCC accelerates its engagement with digital asset firms. In December 2025, the regulator granted conditional approvals to Circle and Ripple, signaling a departure from the previous administration’s "chokepoint" strategy. Currently, Anchorage Digital remains the only crypto-native firm holding a full national trust charter.
USD1 has aggressively expanded since its March 2025 launch, capturing $3.3 billion in market share largely through DeFi integrations on Ethereum and Solana. The charter would allow the protocol to eliminate minting fees for accredited investors, a strategy likely to pressure fee-heavy incumbents like Tether (USDT).
