World Liberty Financial (WLFI)
World Liberty Financial (WLFI) is an Ethereum-based decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol backed by Donald Trump and his family. The protocol began the sale of its tokens on Tuesday, October 15, 2024. [1][2][3]
@WorldLibertyFi Token Sale goes live on Tuesday morning, October 15th! This is YOUR chance to help shape the future of finance - former president Donald Trump tweeted on Oct. 12
Overview
Initially announced as The DeFiant Ones, World Liberty Financial, Inc. (“WLFi”) states its aim to bring permissionless and peer-to-peer digital asset systems to its audience. WLFi is also launching the WLFi governance platform, a DeFi platform for $WLFI token holders to help shape the WLFi protocol through governance. [6]
World Liberty Financial is spearheaded by Zachary Folkman and Chase Herro, who worked previously on the DeFi platform Dough Finance, which saw $2 million of crypto assets drained through a July exploit. They are listed on the whitepaper as World Liberty Financial's head of operations and its data and strategies lead, respectively. [4]
Members of the Trump family, including Donald Trump, publicly supported the project on social media, with the former president titled "Chief Crypto Advocate". Two of his sons, Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr., are involved as "Web3 Ambassadors," while his other son Barron Trump is listed as "DeFi Visionary." [1][6]
A draft white paper seen by CoinDesk suggests that World Liberty Financial will sell 30% of the WLFI tokens generated, with the remaining 70% held by founders, service providers, and other team members. [5]
On October 9, 2024, World Liberty Financial (WLFi) project submitted on the Aave governance forums a proposal to deploy an Aave v3 instance. [7]
This collaboration will aim to combine the peer-to-peer and permissionless lending and borrowing that forms the backbone of DeFi with the usability and UX of web2. [6]
WLFi Advisors
- Corey Caplan - Co-founder, Dolomite
- Alexei Dulub - Founder, PixelPlex
- Cryptogle - Cofounder, Glue
- Rafael Yakobi - Managing Partner, The Crypto Lawyers
- Luke Pearson - General Partner, Polychain Capital
- Sandy Peng - Cofounder, Scroll
- Matthew Morgan - CEO, Mixie Studios & Mixie Media
- Ryan Fang - Founder, Tomo Wallet[8]
Developments
WLFI x Ethena Labs
On December 18, 2024, Ethena Labs organized a strategic partnership with World Liberty Financial in order to integrate Ethena’s sUSDe token — a staked version of its USDe “synthetic dollar” — with World Liberty Financial’s Aave instance, enabling users to deposit USDe and receive rewards in both sUSDe and World Liberty’s WLF token. [9]
According to the statement, Ethena and WLF will explore the potential implementation of sUSDe as the first new token available as collateral on the WLFI protocol, which is backed by Aave.
WLFi launched USD1
On March 25, 2025, World Liberty Financial (WLFI) confirmed the launch of its USD1 stablecoin, which it claims will be backed 1:1 with the US Dollar. This came after the DeFi platform initiated several test transactions using the stablecoin on the Binance BNB Chain [10]
WLFI’s USD1 is 100% backed by short-term US government treasuries, US dollar deposits, and other cash equivalents. Initially, USD1 tokens are minted on the Ethereum (ETH) and Binance Smart Chain (BSC) blockchains, with plans to expand to other protocols in the future. Each token is intended to maintain a value of $1 USD, fully backed by a reserve portfolio audited regularly by a third-party accounting firm. [10]
USD1 reserves will be custodied by BitGo, the world’s largest independent qualified custodian and leader in digital asset security, custody, and liquidity. BitGo provides the operational backbone for thousands of institutional clients in multiple international jurisdictions. BitGo Prime, BitGo’s prime brokerage service, will also support USD1 — providing institutional clients with access to deep liquidity and trading, all from insured and regulated qualified custody.
Symbolic Airdrop Campaign
In June 2025, World Liberty Financial (WLFi) launched a symbolic airdrop campaign, distributing $47 worth of its USD1 stablecoin to eligible WLFi token holders.
The amount—$47—was a direct reference to Donald Trump’s status as the 47th president of the United States, aligning with the platform’s pro-liberty and politically symbolic branding. [11]
The airdrop was framed as a gesture toward economic freedom and an homage to Trump's administration, particularly highlighting perceived policy shifts in favor of cryptocurrency. Although the initiative was relatively modest in terms of its financial scale, it attracted attention for its thematic and political messaging. WLFi positions itself as a blockchain platform advocating for financial liberty and alternative economic systems. [12]
WLFi Token Tradability Proposal
On July 4, 2025, World Liberty Financial (WLFi) introduced a governance proposal seeking to make its native WLFi token tradable on secondary markets. Previously, WLFi was a non-transferable governance token, used solely for voting within the protocol. [13] [14]
The proposal, which was subsequently passed by token holders, outlined a phased unlocking mechanism. It allowed investors who purchased tokens in the early rounds at $0.015 and $0.05 to sell 20% of their holdings. [18] Tokens allocated to the core team, founders, and advisors remained non-transferable under a longer vesting schedule to prevent potential misuse or early sell-offs. [14]
The approval of the proposal:
- Enabled limited peer-to-peer transfers and trading of WLFi tokens on decentralized and centralized exchanges.
- Expanded governance utility by letting token holders vote on proposals related to token emissions, incentives, and treasury actions.
- Represented a major shift toward community empowerment and token utility expansion.
WLFi emphasized that this move supported their long-term vision of a decentralized and community-driven financial ecosystem. [14]
WLFI introduces the Points Program
In August 2025, World Liberty Financial (WLFI) announced the launch of the USD1 Points Program, a new initiative designed to incentivize the use and adoption of its stablecoin, USD1.
The program rewards users for trading, holding, staking, and utilizing USD1 across participating platforms. Users accumulate points through these activities, similar to loyalty systems in traditional finance, to encourage greater engagement within the WLFI ecosystem. The program was introduced in collaboration with Gate.io, which became the first centralized exchange to support the initiative. [15]
The launch of the Points Program marks a strategic move by WLFI to expand the utility of USD1 and reinforce its position in the competitive stablecoin landscape. While WLFI has attracted attention due to its association with U.S. President Donald Trump, the project continues to develop its offerings, focusing on creating user incentives and infrastructure that support decentralized finance and stable digital payments. The Points Program adds to WLFI’s efforts to build a robust ecosystem around USD1, leveraging partnerships and on-chain rewards to grow its user base. [15]
Token Launch
On September 1, 2025, WLFI, the governance token of World Liberty Financial, began trading on major crypto exchanges. The token's debut saw its price trading at five to fifteen times what early backers had paid during initial sales, where tokens were priced at $0.015 and $0.05. [18] The token's price reached a high of $0.31 shortly after public trading began before experiencing a slide to a low of $0.21 within the first day. [18] Early trading placed its price above $0.30 per token, implying a fully diluted valuation exceeding $30 billion, based on its total supply of 100 billion tokens. [16]
However, only about 24.6 billion tokens—approximately 24.6% of the total supply—were in circulation at launch. The remainder is locked, allocated among founders, advisors, the treasury, and future unlocks controlled by community governance. [16]
"We are now live!!!! Our team has always believed in American strength and leadership.With today’s @WorldLibertyFi’s $WLFI token launch, we’re setting a new standard for financial freedom; built on trust, speed, and U.S. values. This is a huge moment for the future of money!" - Eric Trump tweeted [17]
Justin Sun's Wallet Blacklisted
On September 4, 2025, an Ethereum wallet linked to Tron founder Justin Sun was blacklisted by World Liberty Financial. The action was taken after the wallet transferred over $9 million worth of WLFI tokens. The news contributed to market speculation and a subsequent 19% drop in the token's price, which fell to around $0.18. [19]
In response to the event, Sun posted a message on X (formerly Twitter) in Mandarin, denying any intention to sell the tokens. He claimed the transfers were "deposit tests" with very low amounts and that it would have been "impossible for the token movements to have impacted the market." It was noted that early investors like Sun had acquired the token at a significantly lower price of $0.015, meaning they remained profitable despite the price drop. [19]
Token Buyback and Burn Proposal
On September 19, 2025, the World Liberty Financial community passed a governance proposal to implement a token buyback and burn program. The vote passed with an overwhelming 99.8% majority. The proposal mandates that 100% of the project's treasury liquidity fees will be used to purchase WLFI tokens from the open market. These repurchased tokens will then be sent to a burn address, permanently removing them from circulation. [20]
This mechanism was introduced to reduce the token's circulating supply, create more demand, and provide more value for long-term holders. The proposal was seen as a response to the token's price decline of over 28% since its launch. The project also stated it would explore additional sources of protocol revenue to increase the scale of future buybacks and burns. [20]
Debit Card Announcement
During Korea Blockchain Week on September 23, 2025, World Liberty Financial co-founder Zak Folkman announced plans to launch a debit card for its users within weeks. The card is designed to integrate with Apple Pay, enabling users to spend their USD1 stablecoin directly from the platform for everyday transactions. [21]
Folkman described this initiative as part of a larger retail strategy, which includes an upcoming application that combines features similar to Venmo for payments and Robinhood for trading. The goal of these products is to bridge the gap between traditional finance and decentralized markets, making crypto more accessible for mainstream consumers. [21]
Robinhood Listing
On September 25, 2025, the retail trading platform Robinhood listed the WLFI token for its US-based customers. The move was part of Robinhood's ongoing expansion of its digital asset offerings. At the time of the listing, the WLFI token was trading at approximately $0.20 with a market capitalization of $5.4 billion, despite having declined by about 37% since its launch earlier in the month. [22]
The listing on a major platform like Robinhood was a significant development for World Liberty Financial, which aims to position itself as a "Venmo + Robinhood of crypto" to connect traditional finance with the DeFi ecosystem. [22]