Trump-backed WLFI falls 56% as scrutiny grows – What’s next?

President Trump-backed World Liberty Financial’s native token WLFI is closing the year deep in the red, down 56% from its launch-time highs. 2025 has been a year of controversies for the company and its presidential backer, so this fall can’t come at a worse time.

WLFI gets a reality check

Since its September launch, WLFI has remained locked in a wide but clearly defined range, sliding nearly 56% from its highs.

The chart showed price repeatedly failing to reclaim higher levels, with sellers stepping in around the $0.20-$0.24 zone. This area has acted as overhead resistance, capping every bounce so far.

Source: TradingView

Volume looks calmer. After an initial burst of activity during launch, trading interest has gradually thinned out.

The volume profile showed most activity concentrated near the lower end of the range, so there were attempts to buy, but not quite confidently.

For now, WLFI is consolidated. Neither buyers nor sellers are moving strong enough to force a big move.

The capital trail

The project first raised roughly $300 million in October 2024 after selling around 20 billion tokens at $0.015 each. A second sale followed between January and March 2025, bringing in another $250 million from 5 billion tokens priced at $0.05.

By March, the Trump family expanded its crypto footprint with the launch of USD1, later partnering with PancakeSwap [CAKE] to boost its reach. In August, WLFI struck a major $1.5 billion treasury deal with ALT5 Sigma, exchanging tokens for equity.

Source: Businesswire

During the 2025 bull run, WLFI also built sizable positions in assets like WBTC, ETH, MOVE, and several DeFi-linked tokens.

Political ties and subsequent scrutiny

Unlike past US presidents who stepped away from business interests, Donald Trump has remained closely tied to ventures that could benefit from his political influence. World Liberty Financial has become a focal point of that scrutiny.

As Bitcoin climbed in late 2024, reports suggested the Trump family’s stake in WLFI was worth billions, largely due to token ownership.

Lawmakers soon raised alarms.

Senior Democrats urged the SEC to examine whether Trump’s involvement could compromise regulatory independence, citing concerns over potential conflicts of interest. Those calls intensified after claims emerged that WLFI tokens may have reached sanctioned entities.

The White House and the company strongly denied these allegations.

Despite it all, World Liberty continues to expand. Co-founder Zach Witkoff has revealed plans to push into real-world assets in 2026.

Final Thoughts

• WLFI’s 56% drop shows that political backing alone can’t override all else.
• Until trader confidence returns, the token remains trapped.