Two prominent Democratic senators are demanding a probe into World Liberty Financial, the Trump family-backed crypto venture, accusing it of selling governance tokens to entities linked to hostile regimes like Iran and North Korea and money launderers.
The explosive allegations have ignited calls for an immediate federal investigation, raising grave national security concerns at a time when President Trump’s personal fortune is deeply entangled with the booming digital asset world.
World Liberty Financial Faces National Security Scrutiny Amid Illicit Token Sales
Senators Elizabeth Warren and Jack Reed, key figures on the Senate Banking Committee, wrote a letter to Attorney General Pamela Bondi and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.
They demanded answers on potential enforcement actions against World Liberty Financial by December 1, 2025 citing evidence that the firm may have handed “a seat at the table” to America’s adversaries.
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At the heart of the controversy is World Liberty Financial’s $WLFI governance tokens, which gives holders voting power to shape the platform’s future.
A damning September report from nonprofit watchdog Accountable.US revealed that World Liberty Financial sold these tokens to wallets with blockchain ties to North Korea’s infamous Lazarus Group hackers, a sanctioned Russian ruble-backed sanctions-evasion tool, an Iranian crypto exchange, and the notorious money-laundering mixer Tornado Cash.
“These sales indicate an absence of robust sanctions and anti-money laundering controls,” the senators warned. They added that WLF risks supercharging illicit finance activity.”
With plans for expansion into debit cards and tokenized commodities, they could potentially allow bad actors to exploit the platform while enriching the Trump family.
World Liberty Financial lists Donald Trump as “Co-Founder Emeritus,” with sons Eric Trump, Donald Trump Jr., and Barron Trump as co-founders.
A Trump-affiliated entity, DT Marks DEFI LLC, controls 22.5 billion $WLFI tokens worth over $3 billion and pockets 75% of all token sale proceeds.
“Every time a governance token is sold, three-quarters of that money goes directly to President Trump and his family, even for sales to entities linked to North Korea and Russia,” Warren and Reed charged.
This structure, they argue, creates a blatant financial conflict of interest for Trump administration officials, who may prioritize token sales over compliance to boost the president’s wealth.
Recent disclosures show crypto ventures, including $WLF and a $TRUMP memecoin, now account for roughly 73% of Trump’s net worth.
World Liberty Financial Deny Allegations
World Liberty Financial swiftly pushed back, insisting there’s “no conflict of interest” with the U.S. government.
A spokesperson told reporters the firm applied “rigorous AML/KYC checks, the highest standard in the industry”. They added they rejected millions in purchases from failed verifications.
Yet the senators dismissed these claims, pointing to the watchdog’s on-chain evidence as proof of lax safeguards.
The timing adds fuel to the fire. As Congress debates crypto market structure bills that could exempt governance tokens like $WLFI from strict oversight and record-keeping requirements, Warren and Reed urged: “We must ensure that crypto interests do not profit at the expense of U.S. national security.”
Once a vocal crypto skeptic in his first term, President Trump has fully embraced the industry, championing pro-crypto policies like the GENIUS Act. But this latest scandal spotlights the perils of blending White House power with personal crypto empires.
Critics, including longtime crypto foe Democrat Senator Warren, have long warned of such risks.
In this context, the probe into WLF could derail regulatory reforms as well.
