Donald Trump’s World Liberty Financial venture announced plans to launch a new dollar-pegged stablecoin, USD1, which will be fully backed by U.S. Treasuries, dollars, and other cash equivalents to maintain a value of $1. The move follows the venture’s successful raise of over $550 million from the sale of a separate digital token, $WLFI.
Stablecoins like Tether and USDC have become crucial players in the crypto industry, with over $237 billion in circulation. These tokens facilitate transactions between cryptocurrencies and provide liquidity in the market. USD1 aims to tap into this growing market and offer “sovereign investors and major institutions” a secure means of conducting cross-border transactions, according to World Liberty co-founder Zach Witkoff.
The reserves for USD1 will be audited by a third-party firm, although World Liberty has not disclosed further details. The stablecoin will initially launch on the Ethereum and Binance Smart Chain blockchains, with future plans to expand to other platforms. The firm also revealed its partnership with BitGo, a California-based custodian, to handle the reserves and provide institutional clients access to liquidity.
Trump’s crypto interests, including the launch of USD1 and a meme coin earlier this year, have raised concerns among ethics experts about potential conflicts of interest, especially as he has pledged to overhaul U.S. regulations on crypto. Despite this, the initiative aims to compete with established stablecoins in the market, such as Tether and USDC.
