A newly disclosed ownership structure reveals that the Trump family’s planned cryptocurrency bank is substantially backed by a United Arab Emirates royal, with an entity linked to Sheikh Tahn
A newly disclosed ownership structure reveals that the Trump family’s planned cryptocurrency bank is substantially backed by a United Arab Emirates royal, with an entity linked to Sheikh Tahnoun bin Zayed Al Nahyan holding a 49% stake in the venture’s holding company — nearly matching the 38% ownership held by the Trump family’s own crypto business, according to a Wall Street Journal report citing people familiar with the matter.
The Ownership Structure Behind the Bank
The stake belongs to WLTC Holdings, the entity World Liberty Financial (WLFI) established specifically to house its banking operations. According to the Journal’s reporting, an entity connected to Sheikh Tahnoun — sometimes referred to in diplomatic and intelligence circles as the “spy sheikh” — controls just under half of that holding company, while a company affiliated with President Donald Trump’s family holds an additional 38%.
Tahnoun’s stake is structured through StringZ Holding RSC, an entity registered in Abu Dhabi in April 2025 and subsequently re-registered in the U.S. state of Delaware roughly a month later. According to the Journal, StringZ is backed by Tahnoun and a group of co-investors. Tahnoun serves as the UAE’s national security adviser and is the brother of the country’s president, Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan — placing him among the most powerful figures in Emirati government and finance.
This is not Tahnoun’s first major investment in World Liberty’s ecosystem. Reporting earlier this year revealed that a separate entity connected to him, Aryam Investment 1, invested $500 million directly into World Liberty Financial itself, securing a 49% stake in the parent company. The banking subsidiary structure now mirrors that same ownership percentage, this time channeled through StringZ Holding rather than Aryam.
Regulatory Approval and Unusual Conditions
The banking venture cleared a significant regulatory hurdle on August 14, 2026, when the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) granted preliminary conditional approval for World Liberty Trust Co. to obtain a national trust bank charter. The approval allows the entity to operate as a specialized “crypto bank” — rather than a traditional deposit-taking or loan-issuing institution, the trust charter permits World Liberty to directly issue, safeguard, and manage its own dollar-backed stablecoin, USD1, without relying on third-party intermediaries.
Before beginning operations, the company must still satisfy a series of additional requirements and pass a final regulatory review. Notably, as part of the approval process, the OCC required three major shareholders — including StringZ Holding and the Trump family-affiliated entity — to sign passive-ownership agreements. Under these agreements, the shareholders committed not to seek control over the bank or interfere with its management. According to the Journal, conditions of this kind are rarely imposed in the context of U.S. banking license approvals, underscoring the level of regulatory scrutiny applied to this particular ownership structure.
What the Bank Will Actually Do
World Liberty began building its dedicated banking arm in July 2025, shortly after passage of the GENIUS Act, federal legislation that permits qualified stablecoin issuers to directly hold the reserve assets backing their tokens.
Currently, USD1’s issuance is handled by BitGo, which simultaneously serves as custodian for the stablecoin’s reserves and collects a share of the revenue generated from investing those reserves. Once World Liberty finalizes its full banking license, the company plans to bring those functions in-house, additionally offering fee-based custody services for clients’ cryptocurrency holdings. As of this writing, USD1’s market capitalization stands at $4.08 billion.
Political Scrutiny in Washington
The involvement of UAE-linked investors in the Trump family’s banking venture has already drawn scrutiny from congressional Democrats. Back in February, Senator Elizabeth Warren formally requested that then-OCC head Jonathan Gould disclose information regarding Tahnoun’s potential involvement in the banking project. Subsequently, a coalition of 40 lawmakers raised concerns about the risks posed by foreign ownership, national security implications, and questions surrounding the independence of the bank charter approval process.
In response to Journal inquiries, the OCC stated that WLFI’s application was reviewed by career agency staff with input from government ethics experts. A World Liberty spokesperson confirmed that account of the review process but declined to disclose additional details regarding the venture’s shareholder structure. The White House has previously and repeatedly rejected claims that the arrangement constitutes a conflict of interest for the president.
Why This Matters
The ownership disclosure adds a significant new dimension to an already closely watched intersection of presidential family business interests, foreign sovereign wealth, and U.S. banking regulation. Tahnoun’s consistent pattern of investment across both World Liberty Financial’s parent company and its new banking subsidiary — totaling roughly $500 million in the parent entity alone, alongside a near-majority stake in the bank itself — establishes the UAE as arguably the single most consequential foreign stakeholder in a financial institution directly tied to a sitting U.S. president’s family.
The passive-ownership agreements imposed by the OCC suggest regulators were aware of the sensitivity surrounding this specific ownership arrangement, even as the agency ultimately granted preliminary approval. Whether those agreements prove sufficient to address the national security and conflict-of-interest concerns raised by lawmakers will likely remain a central question as World Liberty Trust Co. works through its remaining requirements toward final licensure.
What Comes Next
World Liberty must still satisfy the OCC’s outstanding conditions and pass a final regulatory review before the trust bank can begin formal operations. Given the scale of political attention the venture has already attracted — spanning direct Senate inquiries and a 40-lawmaker coalition letter — the coming months are likely to bring continued congressional and media scrutiny as the bank moves toward launch, particularly regarding how the passive-ownership commitments from its largest shareholders will be monitored and enforced once the institution becomes operational.
