Former US President and current Republican nominee Donald Trump’s sudden embrace of cryptocurrency with World Liberty Financial isn’t just raising eyebrows — it’s setting off alarm bells throughout the crypto community, according to a recent report by CoinDesk.
During his presidency, Trump was notoriously critical of cryptocurrencies. In a 2019 tweet, he declared, “I am not a fan of Bitcoin and other Cryptocurrencies, which are not money, and whose value is highly volatile and based on thin air.” He even went as far as to claim that unregulated crypto assets could “facilitate unlawful behavior, including drug trade and other illegal activity.”
Fast forward to 2024, and Trump is now positioning himself as a “Chief Crypto Advocate” for a project that appears to be built on decidedly shaky ground.
CoinDesk’s report reveals that World Liberty Financial, far from being the robust platform Trump’s team has hinted at, is a hastily cobbled-together venture with glaring red flags. The project’s cornerstone, a non-transferable governance token called WLFI, has left crypto experts questioning its practical utility and value.
A non-transferable token fundamentally contradicts the principles of most cryptocurrency projects. It severely limits liquidity and makes it nearly impossible for the token to have any market-driven value.
The project, at least its early version, also appears to rely on code from Dough Finance, a platform that recently suffered a $1.8 million hack. But CoinDesk points out that “it has not been confirmed whether later iterations of the app contain such earlier code, and there is no indication that any vulnerabilities in the Dough Finance code appear in the new project’s code.”
The team behind World Liberty Financial doesn’t inspire confidence either. His sons Eric and Donald Jr. are listed as “Web3 Ambassadors,” while his youngest son, 18-year-old Barron, is surprisingly labeled as the project’s “DeFi visionary.” Zachary Folkman a.k.a. Zack Bauer, a self-described “Ultimate Alpha Male” who founded the “Date Hotter Girls” platform to sell dating advice, is head of operations. The expertise needed to navigate the complex world of decentralized finance seems glaringly absent.
This dramatic shift in Trump’s stance on crypto coincides with the industry’s growing political influence. Cryptocurrency-related entities have poured a staggering $119 million into the 2024 election cycle, second only to the fossil fuel industry in corporate political contributions. This timing suggests Trump’s crypto venture may be more about tapping into a new donor base than a genuine interest in blockchain technology.
Information for this story was found via the sources and companies mentioned. The author has no securities or affiliations related to the organizations discussed. Not a recommendation to buy or sell. Always do additional research and consult a professional before purchasing a security. The author holds no licenses.
