Key Takeaways
- CEO Zach Witkoff and Donald Trump Jr. dismissed online speculation suggesting the Trump family has left World Liberty Financial
- Speculation arose following WLFI’s brief removal of co-founder information from their website
- A defamation case was filed by World Liberty in Florida against Justin Sun, Tron’s founder, citing misconduct and false information dissemination
- World Liberty claims Sun engaged in secret short-selling of WLFI tokens to manipulate pricing
- The company emphasizes that their USD1 stablecoin features transparent, real-time reserve verification through Chainlink technology
During an appearance at Consensus Miami on Thursday, World Liberty Financial co-founders Zach Witkoff and Donald Trump Jr. directly addressed speculation about the company’s direction and the Trump family’s involvement.
TRUMP JR DENIES EXIT FROM WORLD LIBERTY FINANCIAL
Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) says the Trump family remains involved with World Liberty Financial $WLFI despite online rumors.
The speculation intensified after the company removed several co founders from its website.… pic.twitter.com/VzbXNrM3mD
— BSCN (@BSCNews) May 8, 2026
The speculation gained traction after the company briefly removed co-founder listings—which included President Donald Trump and his three sons—from their official website.
According to Trump Jr., the response was disproportionate to the actual situation. “The website design was changed for a brief period and suddenly everyone thinks we’re walking away,” he explained.
Witkoff clarified the ongoing involvement of key family members. “To my knowledge, both Don and Eric continue to serve as co-founders of this project,” he stated.
Trump Jr. attributed the rumor proliferation to automated systems and organized digital campaigns. “These narratives emerge and gain momentum through bot farms,” he commented.
Their public statement followed closely after World Liberty initiated a defamation action against Tron network creator Justin Sun in a Florida state court.
Notably, Sun represents one of World Liberty’s most significant investors. He previously launched his own legal action against the firm in California federal court last month, alleging improper freezing of his token holdings.
Legal Action Against Major Investor Justin Sun
The Florida filing by World Liberty accuses Sun of engaging in “gross misconduct” related to his WLFI token acquisitions. Additionally, the company alleges Sun conducted covert short-selling operations on WLFI tokens to artificially depress their market value.
Witkoff characterized the legal action as necessary. “We have substantial evidence supporting our claims, which is why we proceeded with this lawsuit,” he explained.
Legal representation for World Liberty is provided by Clare Locke LLP, recognized as a leading defamation litigation firm. The complaint requests both monetary compensation and public corrections from Sun.
The company also responded to concerns regarding their USD1 stablecoin operations. Witkoff emphasized that USD1 maintains transparent reserve verification, implemented through their Chainlink collaboration.
According to Witkoff, anyone can independently verify these reserves through on-chain data at any moment.
National Trust Bank Charter Nearing Approval
Witkoff provided progress details on the company’s pursuit of a national trust bank charter. The application was submitted in January to a Treasury Department division.
“We appear to be approaching the final phase of obtaining conditional approval,” Witkoff indicated.
Securing this charter would enable World Liberty to perform banking operations related to their USD1 stablecoin offering.
The potential approval has sparked opposition from Democratic Party officials. Senator Elizabeth Warren has characterized it as “potentially the most egregious example of presidential corruption in American history.”
World Liberty has not issued a formal response to these particular accusations.
The defamation proceedings against Justin Sun in Florida continue to progress, with the company pursuing both monetary relief and public statement retractions.
