Senator Elizabeth Warren Targets Trump-Affiliated World Liberty Financial Over Bank Charter Bid

Senator Elizabeth Warren is challenging World Liberty Financial, a crypto company tied to President Donald Trump, over its attempt to secure a national bank charter. The senator is urging regulators to block or delay its application, accusing the firm of operating under troubling ethical questions tied to Trump’s unresolved financial conflicts.

World Liberty Financial Faces Senate Heat Over Bank Plans

During a Senate Banking Committee hearing focused on financial regulators, Senator Elizabeth Warren urged Jonathan Gould, the Comptroller of the Currency, to either deny or pause the review of World Liberty Financial’s application for a national trust bank charter. She stated,

Senator Warren has raised her voice against World Liberty Financial, especially citing its ties with President Trump, multiple times. Recently, Warren urged authorities to probe into an alleged secret investment by a UAE royal-linked entity in WLFI. She reportedly raised concerns about possible corruption and called for immediate action and greater transparency around the deal.

Earlier in January, Warren wrote a letter to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, demanding an immediate halt to WLFI’s bank charter application review. Reiterating her stance, Elizabeth Warren pointed out several reasons to potentially halt World Liberty Financial’s bank charter application.

She cited the UAE’s $500 million investment, Trump’s unresolved financial ties, and even the OCC Chief’s potential conflict of interest. Warren states that Gould was appointed by the same President so that he would be forced to approve the Trump-linked WLFI’s application.

OCC Chief Stands Firm Despite Political Pressure

Despite Senator Warren’s pressing, the regulator made it clear that he has no plans to delay or reject World Liberty Financial’s bank charter application. While Warren asked him to at least pause the process, Comptroller of the Currency Jonathan Gould denied, asserting that his office would handle the application the same way it handles every other request.

Gould added that the office follows a standard review process and does not make decisions based on political debate. In a pointed response, he told Warren that the only political pressure he had experienced so far was from her. He stated, “The only political pressure I have felt from any part of the U.S. government, Senator, is from you.”

In response to this stark statement, Elizabeth Warren argued,

This exchange highlights the growing tension between lawmakers and regulators. It also reflects the broader political divide over crypto regulation and concerns about conflicts of interest at the highest levels of government.

It is worth noting that the debate comes amid World Liberty Financial’s plan to launch a FX platform, called “World Swap.” As CoinGape reported recently, WLFI’s FX platform will operate within the USD1 stablecoin ecosystem.