President Donald Trump, and other principals of DT Marks DEFI LLC, have already netted roughly $390 million in revenue from their Ethereum-based decentralized finance project—and that’s just for promoting it.
On Monday, World Liberty Financial announced it had completed its second round of token sales. All in all, the project has brought in $550 million from two rounds of sales of WLFI, its native governance token, according to the company’s own accounting.
Though Trump himself is technically a promoter of World Liberty, and not an active member of the project, the president is still entitled to the lion’s share of revenues the project reaps. According to World Liberty’s gold paper, Trump and his business partners are set to receive 75% of net revenues earned by the project, including WLFI token sales, after operating costs are taken into consideration.
Of the sum raised from sales of WLFI, $30 million has been earmarked to cover company expenses, indemnities, and obligations. Trump and his partners in DT Marks DEFI LLC then get 75% of the remaining amount—a full $390 million—as payment for Trump promoting the project “from time to time” and allowing it to use his name and likeness, according to the project’s gold paper.
It’s unclear who, besides the president himself, will receive funds from the LLC. According to SEC filings, DT Marks DEFI is based in Jupiter, Florida, at the address of the Trump Organization’s executive offices.
When World Liberty first launched token sales in October, the project struggled to attract investors. On the eve of the 2024 election, it had sold less than $15 million worth of WLFI tokens, according to Dune—a fraction of the project’s stated goal of $300 million in sales.
But after Trump recaptured the White House, the project enjoyed a sharp spike in interest. Tron blockchain founder Justin Sun, for instance, said he purchased tens of millions of dollars worth of WLFI, and shortly thereafter joined the project as an advisor.
In late February, the SEC asked a judge to pause its years-long fraud lawsuit against Sun, in order to explore a “potential resolution.”
Since returning to office, Trump has faced questions about potential conflicts of interest, given his personal investment in various crypto ventures at a crucial juncture when his administration is set to effectively write the book on crypto regulation.
One such project, the TRUMP meme coin that launched on the eve of the president’s inauguration, entitles his companies to eventually hold over $9 billion worth of the token at current prices.
Earlier this month, the president’s AI and crypto czar, David Sacks, dismissed the president’s crypto projects as “irrelevant” to industry regulation.
Daily Debrief Newsletter
Start every day with the top news stories right now, plus original features, a podcast, videos and more.
