🧔♂️ A friendly human may check it before it goes live. More news here
Trump-linked crypto firm WLF seeks $1.5b public listing
World Liberty Financial, a cryptocurrency venture linked to the Trump family, is seeking to create a US$1.5 billion public company to hold its WLFI tokens, according to people familiar with the matter.
The proposed deal structure is not finalized, but major technology and cryptocurrency investors have reportedly been approached.
World Liberty lists Donald Trump as co-founder emeritus and offers a dollar-backed stablecoin called USD1, alongside plans for a crypto-lending app.
The company initially issued its WLFI token as a governance tool, with plans to make it tradable on open markets.
Digital-asset treasury firms plan to raise about US$79 billion in 2025 for bitcoin purchases, driven by a favorable US regulatory environment.
Industry experts warn this approach is riskier for less-liquid tokens, and previous deals have often used reverse takeovers of shell companies.
🔗 Source: Bloomberg
🧠 Food for thought
1️⃣ Trump’s latest venture follows a familiar high-stakes pattern
World Liberty’s $1.5 billion fundraising target reflects Trump’s historical approach of launching ambitious projects with significant financial backing and bold market positioning.
Trump’s business history shows a consistent pattern of high-profile ventures with mixed outcomes—from the successful Grand Hyatt renovation that generated $142 million in profits to failed enterprises like Trump Airlines, which lost $365 million, and Trump Mortgage, which closed within a year of launch 12.
His casino ventures particularly demonstrate this pattern, with the Trump Taj Mahal requiring $1.4 million daily just to break even before filing for bankruptcy shortly after opening 3.
The World Liberty structure appears designed to limit direct financial exposure, a lesson learned from Trump’s documented business losses exceeding $1 billion between 1985-1994 3.
Trump’s strategy evolved toward brand licensing rather than direct ownership to reduce personal financial risk, and World Liberty’s token-based model follows this approach by creating distance between the Trump brand and direct asset ownership 4.
2️⃣ Crypto treasury firms represent a new but unproven investment model
World Liberty’s planned structure taps into the 2025 boom in digital-asset treasury firms, which have announced plans to raise an estimated $79 billion for Bitcoin purchases alone this year.
