Eric Trump, World Liberty co-founder, calls banks 'anti-American' over stablecoin fight
TL;DR
Eric Trump criticizes major banks for opposing stablecoin yield provisions in crypto legislation, calling their efforts 'anti-American' for protecting low-interest monopolies. He argues banks are blocking consumers from earning higher yields while his company World Liberty Financial issues its own stablecoin.
Key Takeaways
- •Eric Trump accuses major banks like JPMorgan Chase and Bank of America of lobbying to block stablecoin yields that could offer consumers 4-5%+ returns.
- •He claims banks are protecting their low-interest monopoly and preventing deposit flight by restricting crypto competition through bills like the Clarity Act.
- •Trump's company World Liberty Financial issues the USD1 stablecoin and is seeking a charter through the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency.
- •Both Eric Trump and President Donald Trump have publicly criticized banks' stance on stablecoin legislation, linking it to broader crypto industry negotiations.
- •The crypto market structure bill remains stalled due to conflicts between banks warning about deposit erosion and crypto firms advocating for consumer rewards.
Eric Trump, one of the sons of U.S. President Donald Trump and a co-founder of crypto firm World Liberty Financial, went after the banking industry Tuesday over their opposition to allowing stablecoin yield in crypto market structure legislation.
"Big Banks (think JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Wells Fargo, etc.) are lobbying overtime to block Americans from getting higher yields on their savings—while trying to block any rewards or perks from being given to customers," he said in a post on X, the site formerly known as Twitter.
He said banks pay a marginal interest in comparison to the interest paid to them by the Federal Reserve, and keep the funds as profits.
"Today, the banks are desperately targeting crypto/stablecoins, where platforms plan to offer 4–5%+ yields or rewards," he said.
"The ABA and other lobbyists are spending millions trying to ban or restrict those yields via bills like the Clarity Act, crying 'fairness' and using words like 'stability'—when it's really about protecting their low-rate monopoly and preventing deposit flight. This is anti-retail, anti-consumer, and straight-up anti-American," he said.
World Liberty, the company he co-founded, issues its own stablecoin, USD1. The World Liberty umbrella is also in the process of seeking a charter through the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency.
Trump has shared his grievances with banks over the past year, saying at multiple conferences that they debanked him and his family.
His father, the U.S. president, posted about the Clarity Act on Tuesday, urging Congress to advance the bill and similarly attacking banks for being recalcitrant in negotiations over stablecoin yield in the bill. It's so far unclear whether his post, or indeed Eric Trump's, will significantly shift the needle in the negotiations.
Donald Trump posted shortly after meeting with Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong, who publicly withdrew support from the bill in January over the stablecoin provisions and other sections the crypto executive deemed problematic.
Patrick Witt, the White House's executive director for crypto issues, also pushed back on JP Morgan CEO Jamie Dimon earlier Wednesday, after Dimon said stablecoin issuers should be regulated like banks.
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- President Donald Trump met privately with Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong shortly before publicly accusing banks of trying to undermine the pro-crypto GENIUS Act and urging passage of the Clarity Act.
- The meeting, first reported by Politico, came as Trump posted on Truth Social that banks "need to make a good deal with the Crypto Industry" to advance stalled digital asset legislation on Capitol Hill.
- The crypto market structure bill has been held up amid a clash between banks, which warn that interest-bearing stablecoins could erode deposits and lending, and crypto firms, which argue the GENIUS Act safely allows consumers to earn rewards on their stablecoin holdings.
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