Digital dollar: US Treasury approves Trump family's new bank operations
This story has significance for readers across Kenya and beyond.
- The Treasury Department's OCC granted World Liberty Trust Company preliminary approval to operate as a bank on August 14, 2026
- The company, linked to President Trump and his sons, can issue stablecoins but cannot accept deposits or extend loans under the authorisation
- Democratic senators, led by Elizabeth Warren, announced plans to introduce legislation blocking presidents and their families from owning banks
Elijah Ntongai is an experienced editor at TUKO.co.ke, with more than four years in financial, business, labour and technology research and reporting. His work provides valuable insights into Kenyan, African, and global trends.
A cryptocurrency company connected to President Donald Trump and members of his family has received conditional authorisation to function as a bank, marking what observers describe as an unprecedented moment in US financial history.
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), an arm of the Treasury Department, granted World Liberty Trust Company preliminary approval on August 14 to operate as a national bank.
The authorisation permits the company to issue stablecoins, a form of digital currency pegged to the value of the US dollar, but stops short of allowing it to accept customer deposits or issue loans.
The company, which Trump and his sons launched in 2024, is 38% owned by an entity sponsored by Donald Trump Jr., alongside other Trump family members. Its headquarters are planned for Bay Harbor Islands, Florida.
What World Liberty Financial Said
Zach Witkoff, the company's chief executive and son of Trump's Middle East negotiator Steve Witkoff, outlined the company's ambitions in a statement posted on X.
"Our ambition is clear: to build the most trusted and widely used digital dollar in the world while strengthening the role of the U.S. dollar across the global economy," he said.
Critics and White House Response
The approval prompted immediate pushback from Democratic lawmakers and legal scholars. Austin Campbell, a professor at New York University's Stern School of Business, raised concerns about the regulatory relationship between the OCC and a company tied to the president's family.
"This creates the awkward situation of the OCC needing to police World Liberty, which has an affiliation with the president's family," Campbell told CBS News. "It is pretty unprecedented."
Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren went further, calling the move a "brazen act of self-dealing." On August 15, Warren joined several Democratic colleagues in announcing plans to introduce legislation that would bar the president, vice president, and their immediate family members from owning or operating financial institutions.
The White House rejected suggestions of any impropriety. Spokeswoman Anna Kelly said in a statement to CNN that all of Trump's investment holdings are managed through independent third-party financial institutions operating under fully discretionary arrangements.
"This is the same, tired narrative that Democrats have pushed against President Trump, his family and his administration for a decade… There are no conflicts of interest," Kelly said.
The approval comes as Trump's broader business interests continue to attract scrutiny, with his media company, Trump Media, having recently reported a loss of KSh 30.8 billion (USD 238 million) over a three-month period as traffic to Truth Social declined.
Source: TUKO.co.ke
Reporting originally appeared via TUKO. Read the full source for additional context.