World Liberty Financial, linked to the Trump family, is pushing the USD1 stablecoin away from its native crypto circulation scenario and towards infrastructure more acceptable to traditional financial institutions. Coinpaper, citing Tanaka, reports that the entity has submitted an application to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) to establish a federal trust company called World Liberty Trust Company.
It has covered multiple chains and transaction scenarios.
The report mentions that USD1 is currently circulating on 6 blockchains, with a supply of approximately $4.6 billion. Its integration scenarios include Binance, Gate, Byreal, Tempo, as well as UFC reward distribution and Bitcoin perpetual contract settlement.
However, the article argues that the scope of coverage alone is not enough to entice large institutions. For them, the more crucial factors are who issues the stablecoin, where the reserves are held, and who regulates the entire structure.
The application pertains to issuance and reserve management.
According to reports, the application was submitted by WLTC Holdings on January 7, 2026. If approved, the proposed trust will be responsible for the issuance and redemption of USD1, as well as managing reserve assets, custody arrangements, and settlement processes.
This means that the core operations of USD1 will be placed under the regulatory framework of the Commonwealth Trust Bank, rather than relying solely on distribution through crypto platforms and on-chain usage scenarios. For institutional users, this arrangement typically helps shorten due diligence processes and facilitates the assessment of counterparty risk.
Approval has not yet been finalized.
The report also emphasized that the approval result has not yet been officially confirmed. Tanaka stated that the current assessment is mainly based on anonymous information from former OCC employees, so a more accurate description would be "close to approval" or "high probability of approval," rather than "approval completed."
The article argues that WLFI's current focus is not merely on exchange listings or user growth activities, but rather on addressing the compliance and governance requirements that are paramount for institutional investors. If the Commonwealth Trust Bank's qualification is ultimately approved, USD1 may find it easier to integrate into institutional payment, settlement, and fund management processes.
