Trump Family Tightens Grip On DeFi Platform World Liberty Financial

The Trump family has significantly increased its control over World Liberty Financial, a decentralized finance platform still under development.

What Happened: According to a Reuters report published Monday, the shift follows a second WLFI token sale in January that brought the platform’s total fundraising to $550 million.

Two of the platform’s original co-founders, Zak Folkman and Chase Herro, have reportedly been removed from their positions as controlling parties.

A newly established parent company, WLF Holdco LLC—60% owned by DT Marks DeFi LLC, an entity linked to Donald Trump and his family—now oversees the protocol’s development and governance.

The Trump-affiliated entity replaces Folkman and Herro as the sole directors of World Liberty Financial Inc., according to corporate disclosures.

World Liberty had previously stated that the Trump family would be entitled to 75% of the net revenue from WLFI token sales.

That share, combined with the new corporate structure, gives the Trump family substantial control over both the platform and its financial outcomes.

In total, they hold at least 22.5 billion WLFI tokens out of a 100 billion cap and are also entitled to 60% of protocol-generated revenues once the lending and finance features go live.

Also Read: Circle Eyes $5 Billion Valuation For Upcoming Initial Public Offering

Why It Matters: This is not the Trump family’s first crypto foray.

Donald Trump was introduced as World Liberty’s “chief crypto advocate” during the platform’s October launch.

His sons Eric and Donald Jr. were named “web3 ambassadors,” while Barron Trump was given the title of “chief DeFi visionary.”

The project also lists Zach Witkoff, son of real estate developer Steven Witkoff, and Paxos co-founder Rich Teo as early contributors.

Eric Trump also serves on the board of WLF Holdco LLC.

The WLFI token sales have attracted over 85,000 participants, with nearly 70% of funds coming from wallets spending $100,000 or more.

Notably, Tron founder Justin Sun reportedly purchased $75 million worth of WLFI.

Other crypto entities, including Movement Labs and tokenization firm Ondo Finance ONDO/USD, have announced collaborations with the platform, and on-chain data shows World Liberty’s treasury holds their native tokens.

While World Liberty’s treasury once held over $360 million in assets—including ETH/USD, WBTC/USD, and USDT/USD—it liquidated over 90% of those holdings before starting to buy back tokens.

The current treasury balance is estimated to be over $80 million.

Plans for the platform’s “lend and borrow” market are reportedly nearing launch, alongside a personal finance app.

Additionally, the team is developing USD1, a U.S. dollar-backed stablecoin that will be issued on Ethereum and Binance Smart Chain.

However, some in the crypto space, including Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin, have raised concerns about political figures using token launches as potential tools for influence or corruption.

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