Assassination controversy unresolved, Trump's crypto project suspected of crossing regulatory "red line"
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Assassination controversy unresolved, Trump's crypto project suspected of crossing regulatory "red line"
Several members of the Trump family are involved in the project, with Trump himself serving as the "Chief Crypto Advocate."
Navigating Web3 tides with focused insightsBy David Yaffe-Bellany, Sharon LaFraniere, Matthew Goldstein
Translated by: Shawn, Bitpush News
Donald Trump officially launched his latest business venture—World Liberty Financial—during a live stream, a cryptocurrency company led by two digital currency entrepreneurs with limited experience in high-level business.
The day after a suspected assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump, he appeared in a live broadcast to promote his newest business project—cryptocurrency.
"Whether we like it or not, crypto has to be done," Trump said on X. "This is something I have to do."
Joining him on the livestream were family friends, his two sons—Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump—as well as two relatively unknown cryptocurrency entrepreneurs. Together, they unveiled Trump's new crypto venture, World Liberty Financial—a move that has raised concerns about potential conflicts of interest and even surprised some of crypto’s most enthusiastic supporters.
Trump has been promoting the project since August, but its specific purpose remains unclear. There is still no official launch date. During the livestream, Trump did not discuss the project’s details directly, instead deferring to the two entrepreneurs—Chase Herro and Zachary Folkman. Herro calls himself “the bad boy of the internet,” while Folkman once taught courses on how to attract women.
It is highly unusual for a presidential candidate to launch a new business just weeks before an election, especially one explicitly designed to benefit himself and his family. Yet throughout his political career, Trump has frequently engaged in business activities that ethics experts have deemed problematic. He is the primary owner of Trump Media & Technology Group, the parent company of his social media platform Truth Social, from which he derives roughly $2 billion in personal wealth.
Danielle Brian, executive director of the nonprofit watchdog group Project On Government Oversight, said Trump’s involvement in a cryptocurrency business would pose serious conflict-of-interest issues if he wins the November election. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has been cracking down on the crypto industry, arguing that nearly all cryptocurrencies are unregistered securities and should be regulated like Wall Street stocks.
"He could use his influence to push regulators to favor the businesses he’s involved in," Brian said. Ethics experts have raised similar concerns about Trump’s ownership of a social media company. Representatives for both the Trump Organization and World Liberty Financial did not respond to requests for comment.
For years, Trump was skeptical of cryptocurrencies and even called Bitcoin a “scam.” But during his campaign, he has become increasingly supportive, attending a popular industry conference and receiving donations from crypto executives. "What you’re seeing is a very hostile SEC," Trump said during Monday’s livestream. "And my attitude is different."
The planning for World Liberty Financial began nine months ago, according to Steve Witkoff, a real estate tycoon and close friend of the Trump family, who said he introduced Trump’s sons to Herro and Folkman—the two men leading the project.
By July, AMG Software Solutions, based in Puerto Rico, had filed a trademark application for the platform. The following month, Trump, Eric Trump, and Donald Trump Jr. began posting about the project on X.
During Monday’s livestream, Trump and his sons claimed the cryptocurrency would transform the financial system but provided no details on what their venture actually aims to achieve. However, according to people familiar with the matter, World Liberty Financial is described internally as a lending platform. A white paper reviewed by The New York Times indicates the project will launch a new cryptocurrency called $WLFI and offer it to the public.
On its official X and Telegram accounts, World Liberty Financial says its goal is to drive “mass adoption of stablecoins”—cryptocurrencies designed to maintain a constant value, typically pegged to $1. One person familiar with the project likened it to Instadapp, an existing service that allows users to manage investments across multiple crypto platforms.
According to the team list in the white paper, several members of the Trump family are involved in the business. Trump himself holds the title of “Chief Crypto Advocate.” His 18-year-old son, Barron Trump, is listed as the project’s “DeFi Visionary.” Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr. are named “Web3 Ambassadors,” respectively.
A disclaimer in the white paper states that the platform is not owned by Trump, the Trump Organization, or any family member, although family members may receive compensation. (The white paper was first reported by cryptocurrency news site CoinDesk.)
People familiar with the matter say Steve Witkoff has played an active role in the project. He envisions it partly as a way for Barron Trump to gain entrepreneurial experience and steer him away from meme coins—cryptocurrencies often associated with scams. A spokesperson for Witkoff declined to comment.
Barron Trump did not appear in the livestream, but Trump said his son is passionate about crypto. "He has four wallets," Trump said. "He knows all about this stuff."
The main leaders of the project are Herro and Folkman. During the livestream, Herro said his goal is to enable “every average American” to participate in cryptocurrency investing.
"This country has been very good to me, and crypto has been very good to me," Herro said.
Herro is a relatively obscure figure in the crypto world. He says he was imprisoned in his youth due to long-term drug involvement but later turned his life around and became wealthy. In 2022, he appeared at a cryptocurrency seminar hosted by Jordan Belfort—the inspiration behind the movie *The Wolf of Wall Street*—where he described stablecoins as “the greatest innovation since sliced bread” and said his favorite coin was “vibrant, crazy, almost like a Ponzi scheme.”
Herro has worked closely with Folkman for years. Folkman founded a company called “Date Hotter Girls,” which offered courses on “how to attract, date, and keep beautiful and high-quality women.”
Herro and Folkman have collaborated on multiple business ventures in the U.S. Virgin Islands and later in Puerto Rico. Public records show both own property there—a jurisdiction known for generous tax incentives that have attracted many in the crypto community. Folkman is listed in government databases as someone benefiting from these tax breaks.
Prior to forming companies in Puerto Rico, Herro and Folkman operated Nexus Group in the U.S. Virgin Islands, an internet advertising and media firm that enjoyed similar tax advantages. Herro also ran a cryptocurrency trading firm there called Pacer Capital.
During the livestream, Folkman said that due to increasing government scrutiny of cryptocurrencies, the digital tokens associated with World Liberty Financial would only be available to accredited investors. He added, “The lawyers are staring nervously at me.”
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