Donald Trump is entering the cryptocurrency world by launching World Liberty Financial’s (WLF) native token to raise $300 million. With the sale of WLFI tokens starting on October 15, we have entered a world of digital finance and politics.
The $1.5 billion valued project will be open be opened to qualified investors through a whitelist. This comes at a critical juncture in the US presidential election where cryptocurrency has turned into a major policy issue. With Trump’s entry into the DeFi scene, there will be an increased acceptance of blockchain in high-profile persons.
WLF's recent proposal to the Aave governance forum seeks to establish an instance on the network, potentially providing liquidity for digital assets including Ethereum (ETH), wrapped Bitcoin (WBTC), and various stablecoins. In exchange of this, AaveDAO would get access to a 7% supply of WLFI tokens and 20% of all the DeFi protocol fees which is in line with DeFi integration trends.
As of October 2024, the total value locked (TVL) in DeFi protocols stands at $81.85 billion, as per statistics from DeFi TVL aggregator DeFi Llama.
This comes at a time when Donald Trump has promised the crypto community that he would take measures like establishing a Bitcoin advisory council and firing SEC Chair Gary Gensler. These promises were made when the cryptocurrency industry was facing increased scrutiny from the SEC as seen 46 crypto-related enforcement actions in the 2024 fiscal year.
The WLFI tokens sale launched by Trump marks a shift in his cryptocurrency stance as he had tweeted in 2019 that he isn’t a “fan of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies”. Now as more Americans are investing in crypto, 16% as of September 2024, up from 11% in the same period in 2021, the political landscape is favouring cryptocurrency.
However, critics have raised concerns about the lack of substantive information provided during the initial announcement of the WLFI tokens sale, resulting in listener numbers dropping from 150,000 to 47,000 during a live X Spaces event. Additionally, questions remain about how the project will navigate complex regulatory waters, especially given the ongoing debate over cryptocurrency classification as securities.
The WLFI token sale's impact on the broader crypto market remains to be seen as the project enters a crowded field of over 12,000 active cryptocurrencies. The success of WLFI will likely depend on its ability to differentiate itself and deliver on its promises in a highly competitive and rapidly evolving landscape.