Trump Family’s Crypto Venture Faces Extortion Lawsuit

A legal action has been launched against the Trump family’s World Liberty cryptocurrency initiative, with a major investor alleging the company engaged in extortion. Justin Sun, a billionaire backer, claims the firm orchestrated an “illegal scheme” to seize his WLFI tokens, a digital currency under the project’s umbrella. According to Sun, the Trump-linked entity has locked all his tokens and revoked his ability to influence governance decisions.

Sun, known for founding the TRON blockchain platform, initially poured $45m (£33m) into World Liberty. He noted that his tokens once reached a valuation exceeding $1bn (£740m). However, since September, the value of each WLFI token has sharply declined, from 31 cents to nearly 8 cents. The lawsuit, filed in a San Francisco federal court, centers on Sun’s belief that the firm’s leadership, including co-founder Chase Herro, exploited the Trump brand to perpetrate fraud.

“They wrongfully froze all of my tokens, stripped me of my right to vote on governance proposals, and have threatened to permanently destroy my tokens by ‘burning’ them—without any proper justification,” Sun stated in a social media post.

World Liberty has denied the allegations, countering that Sun is fabricating claims to mask his own misdeeds. The firm accused him of “playing the victim” while making unfounded accusations. Meanwhile, investors have raised concerns about the company’s reliance on token values for financing. The Securities and Exchange Commission recently concluded its investigation into Sun, prompting questions from Senator Elizabeth Warren about potential ties to his investments in Trump’s crypto projects.

Separately, the Trump business entity behind the Truth Social platform recently replaced its CEO, Devin Nunes, following a significant drop in its share price. Kevin McGurn, previously associated with Hulu, Vevo, and T-Mobile, will temporarily assume leadership. Over the past year, Trump Media & Technology shares have lost nearly two-thirds of their value, struggling to gain traction beyond the president’s loyal following.