Eric Trump Steps Back from World Liberty's Trust Bank Amid Federal Approval Process

World Liberty Financial's proposed trust bank has made progress in its federal approval process. Eric Trump, co-founder of World Liberty and son of former US President Donald Trump, agreed to limit his influence over the bank's decision-making processes. This move is seen as a necessary step to ensure that the bank operates independently and without undue influence from its investors.

The commitment, known as a passivity agreement, was signed by Eric Trump, co-founder Zak Folkman, and Emirati investor Hamad Khalfan Ali Matar Alshamsi. These agreements keep all three investors away from bank management decisions while the company navigates federal approval.

The World Liberty Trust Company is seeking a federal charter to operate as a regulated trust bank. This would allow it to directly hold assets supporting its dollar-backed stablecoin, USD1, which has a market value of nearly $4 billion according to CoinGecko. The charter would also enable the company to keep issuance and reserve management within the same organization.

The move is seen as part of a wider shift in federal policy towards crypto banking under the Trump administration. World Liberty's filing comes after the US Comptroller of the Currency, Jonathan Gould, stated that approving new bank charters would be one of his priorities. The company now faces the remaining steps in the approval process.