US House Lawmaker Calls for Suspension of WLFI Bank Charter Approval

JH Kim

Summary

A US House lawmaker said the related bank charter process should be suspended until the probe into links between WLFI and the UAE is completed.
Rep. Meeks said WLFI may be closely connected to foreign governments and sovereign wealth capital, arguing this could undermine confidence in the financial system.
Concerns over political and diplomatic interests have grown following a $500 million investment by members of the UAE royal family and approval of sales of Nvidia AI chips, putting the political debate over the WLFI bank charter back in the spotlight.

A US House lawmaker said the bank chartering process should be halted until an investigation into ties between World Liberty Financial (WLFI) and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is concluded.

According to crypto-focused outlet The Block on the 4th (local time), Rep. Gregory Meeks sent a letter to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent urging that the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) put on hold a bank charter linked to WLFI. Meeks raised strong concerns about the relationship between WLFI and the UAE.

In the letter, Meeks pointed to the possibility that WLFI may be closely connected to foreign governments and sovereign wealth capital, arguing that moving forward with a bank charter under such circumstances could undermine confidence in the financial system. He specifically cited capital ties between WLFI and members of the UAE royal family as a key issue.

It has previously been reported that members of the UAE royal family invested about $500 million in World Liberty Financial. After the US government allowed the sale of hundreds of thousands of Nvidia artificial intelligence (AI) chips to the UAE, suspicions emerged that political and diplomatic interests were intertwined.

In related developments, the OCC recently rejected requests from some senators to launch a special probe into the bank chartering process tied to WLFI. The OCC has maintained that it is proceeding with its review under existing procedures.

The House lawmaker’s request has again thrust the political debate over WLFI’s bank charter into the spotlight. Attention is now on what position the Treasury Department and the OCC will take on the matter.