Trump is building the "Crypto National Team": a complete layout from WLFI to National Trust Bank

1. Introduction

In previous articles, we mentioned that on September 1, 2025, the crypto project supported by the Trump family, World Liberty Financial (WLFI), officially launched and completed its token issuance.

However, at that time, the project did not receive overwhelming optimism.

The reasons are not complicated:

As a high-profile DeFi project, WLFI’s core functions—such as lending and liquidity pools—had not yet gone live. The market saw more of a “token first, storytelling later” structure, which led many to view it as another typical “token issuance narrative.”

It wasn’t until January 12, 2026, that WLFI officially launched the lending platform World Liberty Markets, and things began to change noticeably.

This was not just a product launch but a directional statement—WLFI is attempting to build a “compliant version of the crypto national team” infrastructure.

2. A Year of Stablecoin Explosion, USD1 is Rapidly Gaining Ground

Looking back at 2025, stablecoins were undoubtedly one of the most steadily growing sectors in the crypto industry.

The total stablecoin market cap grew from $130.553 billion at the beginning of the year to $308.585 billion, with an annualized growth rate of 136%.

Amid fluctuating markets and ongoing regulatory battles, stablecoins became the asset class most “willing to stay” in the capital.

WLFI’s judgment on this trend was not late. As early as March 2025, it launched the stablecoin USD1. As of now, USD1’s circulation has exceeded $3.4 billion. Notably, after WLFI completed its TGE, USD1 experienced a significant acceleration:

• Circulation increased from $2.462 billion
• To $3.438 billion within three months
• Growth rate of approximately 40%, making it one of the fastest-growing mainstream stablecoins during the period

Currently, USD1 ranks seventh among stablecoins and is expected to surpass PayPal USD (PYUSD).

Its daily trading volume is approximately $1–3 billion, mainly distributed on BNB Chain (about 55.61%) and Ethereum (about 37.38%).

Regarding project background, WLFI also has a strong “political and compliance label”: Trump himself is an honorary co-founder, and Donald Jr., Eric, and Barron Trump are all listed on the founding team. Under this structure, the project is naturally unlikely to follow a “gray growth” path but is pushed toward compliance.

On January 7, 2026, WLFI announced that its subsidiary WLTC Holdings LLC had submitted an application to the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) to establish the World Liberty Trust Company, National Association (WLTC)—a national trust bank designed specifically for stablecoin operations.

3. Why Must We “Run Our Own Bank”?

In the Web3 industry, “establishing a bank” sounds like an extremely capital-intensive and somewhat counterintuitive move.

But for WLFI, this step is precisely at the core of its strategy. WLFI’s application to establish the World Liberty Trust Company (WLTC) aims to obtain a national trust bank license issued by the OCC.

If successful, this would fundamentally change the operation mode of USD1.

In simple terms, it would shift from relying on third-party “assembled compliance” to a full-stack model directly regulated by the federal government.

According to disclosed information, WLTC plans to cover the following business areas:

• Directly mint and burn USD1 without relying on external institutions
• Provide a direct exchange channel between USD and USD1
• Offer regulated custody services for USD1 and similar assets, gradually replacing third-party custodians like BitGo

4. The Significance of This Change Is More Than Just “Higher Efficiency”

OCC’s regulatory license is essentially a federal credit endorsement, which will significantly lower the psychological barriers for institutions and large funds to enter.

Currently, Binance has deeply involved in the creation of USD1 and added trading pairs, and Coinbase has also listed this asset.

Based on this, directly accepting federal regulation helps WLFI better meet stablecoin regulatory requirements such as the GENIUS Act and paves the way for subsequent institutional adoption.

5. World Liberty Markets: Connecting TradFi and DeFi with Lending

While the regulatory application is still under review, WLFI did not wait for the outcome but chose to start running its business.

The positioning of World Liberty Markets is very clear:

It is a lending market centered around USD1.

On this platform, users can:

• Deposit assets to earn interest
• Use their assets as collateral to borrow other tokens

The lending system uses USD1 as the core settlement asset, supporting multiple collateral types such as ETH, USDC, USDT, WLFI, cbBTC, covering mainstream crypto assets and protocol-native tokens.

This structure has two direct effects:

• First, providing real on-chain use cases for USD1, not just “issuing and holding”
• Second, helping USD1 gradually build depth within the DeFi ecosystem through lending and liquidity pools

If WLTC’s banking license is approved in the future:

• Fiat on-ramps will further lower participation barriers
• More traditional funds can directly enter on-chain lending
• The credit endorsement of USD1 will enhance its liquidity stability in reverse

Regardless of the final approval outcome, USD1 has already begun transitioning from a “stablecoin issuance concept” to an “on-chain financial instrument,” officially entering the race alongside mainstream DeFi protocols.

It is worth noting that institutional adoption is continuously increasing. For example, Abu Dhabi investment firm MGX used USD1 to purchase $2 billion worth of Binance shares, providing an important external endorsement.

6. Background Is Not Enough; WLFI Still Faces Several Hard Hurdles

Of course, WLFI also faces challenges. First, applying for a national trust bank entails higher levels of political and compliance scrutiny.

During OCC approval, discussions about potential conflicts of interest are almost unavoidable.

Although Zach Witkoff emphasized that the Trump family does not hold executive roles or voting rights, in the current highly sensitive political environment, approval outcomes remain uncertain.

Second, from a product perspective, there are still significant gaps between USD1 and USDT, USDC. Whether in liquidity depth, application coverage, or ecosystem composability, leading stablecoins still hold advantages.

To continue expanding, WLFI needs to demonstrate that its competitiveness is not only rooted in compliance narratives and political backing but also includes technological experience, capital efficiency, and usability within DeFi. Meanwhile, as OCC continues to approve institutions like Circle, Ripple, BitGo, Paxos, and Fidelity for similar licenses, a “regulated crypto financial system” is gradually taking shape, and competition will only intensify.

7. From WLFI to the Next Phase of Web3 and RWA

It is worth noting that on October 16, 2025, Eric Trump publicly stated that he is promoting a real estate RWA plan related to the family’s building projects.

From establishing a national trust bank, launching a mobile app, planning USD1 debit cards, to gradually introducing RWA assets, it is clear that this is not a single experiment but a systematic Web3 layout.

For RWA companies engaged in overseas expansion, WLFI’s path provides a clear signal:

The future of Web3 is not just about “bringing assets on-chain” but about building a sustainable long-term system around compliance gateways, stablecoins, financial infrastructure, and real assets.

Note: This column only provides industry observations and information sharing on Web3 and RWA projects and does not constitute any project recommendation or investment advice.