The U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs published excerpts from a hearing exchange in which Ranking Member Elizabeth Warren asked Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) Comptroller Jonathan Gould to provide her and Committee Chairman Tim Scott with an unredacted copy of World Liberty Financial’s (WLF) pending bank charter application. Gould declined to discuss the specifics of the application but said he would consider the request and review it with his team. Warren questioned whether WLF’s application disclosed a UAE entity as a “principal shareholder” following reporting that a UAE buyer acquired a 49% stake in WLF for “half a billion dollars.” She cited OCC rules requiring charter applicants to disclose principal shareholders, defined in the exchange as persons with at least a 10% direct or indirect stake, and noted that such insiders must file a Biographical and Financial Report, with failure to do so described as grounds to dismiss an application. Gould pointed to established procedures in OCC regulations and the Comptroller’s licensing manual, and indicated he would assess whether providing the application to the Committee in camera would be consistent with privileges afforded in similar situations.
U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs 2026-02-26
U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs presses OCC to provide an unredacted World Liberty Financial bank charter application
The U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs held a hearing where Elizabeth Warren requested an unredacted copy of World Liberty Financial's bank charter application from OCC Comptroller Jonathan Gould. Warren raised concerns about a UAE entity's 49% stake in WLF and compliance with OCC disclosure rules for principal shareholders. Gould stated he would review the request and consider providing the application to the Committee in camera.