Trump-linked WLFI mints $205M USD1 after Fed Governor backs stablecoins

World Liberty Financial, the DeFi platform backed by the Trump family, minted $205 million worth of its USD1 stablecoin on Thursday, hours after a stablecoin endorsement speech from senior Federal Reserve official Michelle Bowman.

The issuance, announced on X, raised USD1’s total supply to a record $2.4 billion, the token’s largest increase since late April. The April-launched stablecoin is currently the world’s sixth-largest by market capitalization with $2.39 billion.

Fed endorsement precedes USD1 mint

USD1’s 205 million token minting spree coincided with a speech by Federal Reserve Vice Chair for Supervision Bowman at the Wyoming Blockchain Symposium. As covered by Cryptopolitan earlier this week, Wyoming became the first state to launch a stablecoin.

“I believe that stablecoins have the potential to maintain and extend the role of the dollar internationally,” Bowman said Wednesday. She added that stablecoins could also improve retail and cross-border payments.

Bowman further highlighted the GENIUS Act, legislation signed into law last month, saying it was “an important step for the payment stablecoin market and could help stablecoins reach their full potential.”

USD1 gains ground in global stablecoin market

Since its debut, USD1 has steadily ascended, although it is still far behind the sector’s leaders, USDT and USDC. Tether’s USDT commands around 60% of the market with a $167 billion capitalization, while Circle’s USDC holds a 24% share at $67.4 billion.

According to data from blockchain intelligence firm Arkham, World Liberty Financial controls $465.6 million in assets across multiple tokens as of Thursday. The firm’s largest single holding was USD1, with 212.6 million units worth $212.6 million.

Additional assets include 85.4 million AETHUSDT valued at $85.4 million, 32.8 million USDC worth $32.8 million, and 162,692 AETHWBTC with a market value of $18.5 million. The portfolio also contains significant positions in AETHWETH, AETHWSTETH, and AETHUSDC, each valued in the tens of millions.

Arkham’s balance history chart shows World Liberty Financial’s wallet holdings hovering between $160 million and $200 million through July, with little deviation. However, a crypto market upturn at the start of August that pushed Bitcoin over the $124,000 level propelled balances above $300 million before settling at roughly $465 million.

On August 11, World Liberty Financial announced that ALT5 Sigma, a publicly traded technology company, sold $1.5 billion worth of stock, with the proceeds earmarked for acquiring $WLFI, the cryptocurrency issued by World Liberty. 

According to securities filings, the arrangement will also see World Liberty receive shares in ALT5 in exchange for $750 million worth of its tokens. 

The latter company recently refuted allegations that it was under a US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) investigation for insider trading and its supposed ties to Live Ventures chief executive Jon Isaac.

Treasury eyes stablecoins as buyers of US debt

The expansion of USD1 comes as Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent pursues efforts to integrate stablecoins into US fiscal strategy.

According to people familiar with the matter, Bessent has approached issuers such as Tether and Circle to somehow use their reserves, often backed by US Treasuries, to finance the government’s $36 trillion debt obligation.

Bessent reportedly told Wall Street contacts that he expects stablecoins to become a source of demand for Treasuries. These discussions have already influenced the department’s plans to expand sales of short-term bills in the coming quarters.

US public finance independent analysts project the country’s debt-to-GDP ratio will reach historic highs over the next decade, exacerbated by increased borrowing under President Donald Trump’s tax reforms.

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