Abu Dhabi Royal Takes Major Stake in Trump-Linked Crypto Bank Venture
Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan's group has taken a 49% stake in WLTC Holdings, the holding company behind World Liberty Financial's proposed US trust bank. This is according to people familiar with the matter, who spoke with the Wall Street Journal. An entity affiliated with Donald Trump's family owns another 38%, one person said.
The planned bank would oversee the issuance, redemption, and custody of World Liberty's $1 stablecoin under federal supervision. Tahnoon is the UAE's national security adviser and chairman of artificial intelligence company G42. The US authorized exports of advanced AI chips to G42 in November 2025, following a broader AI cooperation framework agreed by Washington and Abu Dhabi.
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency granted World Liberty Trust Company preliminary conditional approval on August 14. Its decision confirms that StringZ Holding RSC is an investor in WLTC Holdings and has signed commitments not to influence the bank, but it does not identify Tahnoon as its backer or disclose his stake.