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Billionaire investor files lawsuit against World Liberty Financial
Justin Sun, a prominent cryptocurrency entrepreneur, has accused World Liberty Financial of extortion, alleging the firm froze his tokens and stripped his governance rights without justification. The company, co-founded by former U.S. President Donald Trump and his son Eric Trump, denies the claims, calling them "baseless."
Allegations of token manipulation and threats
Sun, founder of the multi-billion-dollar TRON blockchain, invested $45 million in World Liberty Financial, acquiring WLFI tokens that一度 reached a valuation exceeding $1 billion. However, he claims the firm has since blocked him from selling or voting with his tokens and threatened to "burn" them-permanently destroying the assets.
In a social media post announcing the lawsuit, Sun stated: "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-all without any proper justification."
World Liberty denies wrongdoing, fires back at Sun
World Liberty Financial has vehemently denied the allegations, with co-founder Zach Witkoff calling the lawsuit a "desperate attempt to deflect attention from Sun's own misconduct." Witkoff, son of Trump's Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, claimed Sun engaged in actions that forced the company to "protect itself and its users."
Eric Trump weighed in, mocking Sun's past purchase of a $6 million banana duct-taped to a wall-a reference to an artwork Sun later ate in 2024. "The only thing more ridiculous than this lawsuit is spending $6 million on a banana duct-taped to a wall," he said.
Broader concerns over World Liberty's practices
Sun's complaint, filed in a San Francisco federal court on Tuesday, argues that initial promises to allow token-holders to trade WLFI were "false and misleading." While the tokens became tradeable for others, Sun claims he remains locked out.
Investor unease has grown over World Liberty's practice of borrowing against the value of its tokens. Meanwhile, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) recently dropped its investigation into Sun, though Senator Elizabeth Warren questioned whether the decision was influenced by his investments in Trump-linked crypto ventures.
Sun had previously faced allegations of paying influencers to promote his companies without disclosure.
Leadership shakeup at Trump's Truth Social
Separately, Trump Media & Technology Group, the parent company of Truth Social, replaced CEO Devin Nunes with interim leader Kevin McGurn. The move follows a steep decline in the company's share price, which has fallen by nearly two-thirds over the past year as it struggles to expand its user base beyond Trump's core supporters.
McGurn, a former executive at Hulu, Vevo, and T-Mobile, will temporarily assume leadership as the platform seeks to stabilize its operations.
