A cryptocurrency token supported by the Trump family is getting closer to being traded publicly on exchanges, which may allow early insiders to make significant profits. Meanwhile, it also raises new concerns regarding investor protection and governance in the rapidly expanding digital asset market.
World Liberty Financial Inc. (WLFI), co-founded by Trump, his sons Donald Jr. and Eric Trump, and real estate magnate Steven Witkoff, announced on July 4 the beginning of the process to list its WLFI token on crypto exchanges. The move was revealed in a public statement shared by the Trump sons and marks the project’s first formal step toward open market trading.
The token was introduced last year as a governance-focused digital asset meant to enable community voting on the direction of the decentralized finance (DeFi) initiative. WLFI was initially launched as a non-transferable token, but informal trading has already taken place on secondary platforms such as Whales.market and MEXC. Its recent prices ranged between 13 and 18 cents — a sharp rise from its initial sale prices of 1.5 and 5 cents.
A public feedback forum on the World Liberty website has drawn more than 400 responses, with majority voicing support for the proposal. No timeline has been confirmed for when the token will be fully unlocked for public exchange.
According to the project’s October whitepaper, entities linked to the Trump family and business allies are estimated to hold roughly one-third of the total 100 billion WLFI token supply. Based on current secondary market valuations, those holdings could be worth billions on paper. However, the actual realized value remains uncertain.
Bruno Ver, a Dubai-based entrepreneur and WLFI token investor remarked , “I think it could easily hit $2-to-$5 pretty quickly.” He added that he intends to sell about 10% of his stake if the token reaches that price level. At a $2 price, Trump-aligned entities could be sitting on stakes worth approximately $60 billion.
The proposal seeks to partially unlock tokens held by unspecified “early supporters.” The document suggests that tokens held by founders, advisers, and team members will remain under longer lock-up periods and will be subject to future community votes. This move aims to reflect a commitment to long-term protocol growth.
Community discussions are expected to continue, with a formal vote likely to occur via the Snapshot platform. Vincent Deriu, who manages one of the most active Discord communities for WLFI, anticipates the vote could extend into August or beyond. A spokesperson for World Liberty declined to comment on the proposal or timeline.
