Crypto Reporter
Shalini Nagarajan
Crypto Reporter
Shalini Nagarajan
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The Trump family’s paper fortune surged by as much as $6b on Monday after their flagship crypto venture, World Liberty Financial, began trading its token WLFI on major exchanges.
WLFI’s debut resembled a public listing, opening the door for open-market trading. Previously, holders who purchased the token in private sales had no way to trade or liquidate their positions.
Trading volumes surged on Binance and other exchanges, with about $1b worth of tokens changing hands in the first hour, according to CoinMarketCap. Prices fluctuated between 24 cents and 30 cents, in line with futures trading that preceded the debut.
At the higher end of that range, the Trump family’s stake was valued at more than $6b, making WLFI their single most valuable asset, the Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday.
Trump Family Holds Nearly One-Quarter Of WLFI Supply
The family, including President Trump, holds just under a quarter of all tokens. However, founders and insiders are not yet able to sell. World Liberty has said those holdings remain locked. Even so, the debut established a market price for assets that were previously valued only through private transactions.
WLFI’s price later retreated, falling 16% to $0.23 by early Tuesday morning. Even so, the launch cemented World Liberty’s position as the centerpiece of the Trump family’s fast-growing crypto portfolio.
The venture was created last year while Trump was campaigning. He presented it as part of a broader push to extend his campaign slogan into the world of cryptocurrency.
His three sons are co-founders, while the president is listed as “co-founder emeritus.” Since then, World Liberty has also issued a stablecoin and positioned itself as a platform for retail investors to access decentralized finance.
Early Investors See 15x Gains But Face Selling Limits
The debut delivered a windfall for early backers. Investors who bought WLFI at the presale price of 1.5 cents a token saw their holdings trade at over 15 times that value. However, they are allowed to sell only up to 20% of their tokens at this stage.
World Liberty’s rise was fueled by aggressive financial engineering. Over the summer, it took control of a publicly listed firm and raised $750m in cash from investors to buy its own tokens.
Adding other crypto assets has expanded the family’s exposure. For example, Trump-related entities control about 8% of $TRUMP, a memecoin worth several billion dollars. In addition, a Trump-owned trust holds just over half of Trump Media, a listed company valued at roughly $2.5b.
The family’s pivot into crypto has eclipsed their traditional real estate portfolio in paper value. While they continue to pursue property deals globally, digital tokens have quickly become their most lucrative venture.
Yet the wealth remains notional. Analysts caution that cashing out could prove difficult, as even modest selling pressure risks dragging down prices in illiquid markets.
The trading debut also drew scrutiny from critics. Democratic lawmakers and ethics experts argue that Trump’s deep involvement in crypto, while simultaneously reshaping regulation from the White House, presents significant conflicts of interest.
