Original | Odaily Planet Daily ( @OdailyChina )_
Author | Vincent31515173 ( @vincent31515173 )_
Recently, US presidential candidate Trump led the core team of World Liberty Financial to have a dialogue with Farokh, the founder of Rug Radio, on the X platform. The day before the live broadcast, Trump had just experienced a second shooting incident.
In this live broadcast, Trump elaborated on his views on the cryptocurrency industry, the hostility of the US SEC towards the cryptocurrency industry, the policies towards the cryptocurrency industry after being elected, and other related aspects such as NFT.
After Trump concluded the relevant interview, his good friend Steve Witkoff also expressed his views on the cryptocurrency industry and World Liberty Financial, followed by the core members of World Liberty Financial expressing their opinions one after another. Finally, Zak Folkman, the operations director of World Liberty Financial, officially disclosed information about the project.
Trump's Core Views on the Cryptocurrency Industry
The US should become the capital of cryptocurrency: Trump believes that the US should take action quickly to become the global leader in cryptocurrency. If the US does not take the initiative, countries such as China will take the lead.
Hostile current regulatory environment: He criticized the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for its hostile attitude towards the cryptocurrency industry, believing that the Biden administration lacks support for the cryptocurrency industry. If the cryptocurrency industry does not receive appropriate regulatory framework, US innovation will lag behind other countries.
Support for legal framework for the cryptocurrency industry: Trump stated that the US needs to establish a clear legal framework for the cryptocurrency industry to ensure that businesses can develop domestically. He mentioned that the operating environment for cryptocurrency entrepreneurs in the US is currently full of uncertainty, leading many entrepreneurs to leave the US.
Widespread use of cryptocurrency payments: He pointed out that an increasing number of people are using cryptocurrency for payments, a trend that was almost unseen in the past few years. He believes that cryptocurrency will continue to grow in the future and may become a major payment method.
Inspiration from NFT experience: Trump's NFT series has been very successful, which surprised him and led him to re-examine the potential of cryptocurrency through this experience. He mentioned that most NFT buyers use cryptocurrency for payment, giving him a new understanding of cryptocurrency payments.
Competition in future technology: Trump believes that the US must maintain a leading position in future technologies such as cryptocurrency and artificial intelligence (AI), or else it will be surpassed by other countries. He emphasized that these technologies will be key areas of global competition.
Core Views on the World Liberty Financial Token
Token plan:
World Liberty Financial will issue governance token WLFI, dedicated to platform governance.
The token only provides voting and proposal rights, without any economic rights, and is non-transferable.
Eligibility for purchase:
The sale of WLFI tokens will be restricted, and US investors must be accredited investors (compliant with Regulation D).
Sales to non-US investors will also comply with relevant legal requirements.
Token distribution method:
63% of the tokens will be publicly sold, with no pre-sale or early VC discounts.
17% will be used for user rewards, and 20% will be reserved for team compensation.
The voting rights cap is 5% to ensure the fairness of governance.
Author's subjective opinion: After watching the live broadcast, the author believes that this live broadcast is more like Trump's speech to cryptocurrency voters. It can be seen that Trump actually does not fundamentally understand the native cryptocurrency industry, but rather provides a macro interpretation of the cryptocurrency industry from a national perspective. However, it can be seen that he acknowledges the cryptocurrency industry.
From the responses of other core members of World Liberty Financial, it can be seen that the target audience of the project is not the current investors in Web3, but more about advocating the entry of new users. Moreover, most of the content spoken by the majority is too macro and provocative. There is no real feasible project introduction.
Finally, after the operations director Zak Folkman announced the token economics, except for the differences in token distribution from the previous disclosure by CoinDesk, the remaining content is basically the same, and the token is non-transferable, only having governance functions.
The following is a selection of live broadcast dialogue excerpts, compiled and translated by Odaily Planet Daily.
Trump's Views on the Cryptocurrency Industry
Farokh: You have said that the US should become the global capital of cryptocurrency. Why is it not the case now?
Trump: I believe the US will soon become the capital of cryptocurrency. Currently, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is very hostile towards the cryptocurrency industry, which is hard to understand, but it is related to the current Biden administration. Their hostile attitude is even unbelievable. My attitude is different. I believe that if the US does not take proactive action, China will take the lead. In fact, China has already been doing so. Although the cryptocurrency industry has some issues, such as reputation problems, overall it is still very young and developing rapidly. If we do not take action, other countries will take the lead.
My children are very knowledgeable about cryptocurrency, especially Barron, who has four cryptocurrency wallets. Eric and Barron also excel in this field. Young people often understand these technologies better than older people. I respect their judgment. Although cryptocurrency is still in its early stages, its prospects are huge. I have noticed that more and more people are using cryptocurrency for payments, which was rare a year or two ago. So I believe that cryptocurrency will become even bigger in the future.
Farokh: Why is it so important for the US to take a leading position in the adoption and innovation of cryptocurrency?
Trump: Whether it is cryptocurrency or artificial intelligence (AI), these are important future technology fields. If the US does not take quick action, other countries will surpass us. China has already been building power facilities specifically for AI, while in the US, it takes a long time to build power infrastructure due to environmental regulations. I will create conditions to accelerate infrastructure construction and ensure that the US takes a leading position in technology fields such as AI and cryptocurrency.
The US must maintain a leading position in all key areas, especially in technology fields such as cryptocurrency and AI. Just like space exploration, when I was in office, the US became a global leader again, and Musk has also achieved outstanding accomplishments in this regard. He is my friend and firmly supports me.
Farokh: Do you think the US should establish a legal framework for the cryptocurrency industry to allow businesses to thrive here?
Trump: Yes, I think it is very necessary. The cryptocurrency industry needs a clear legal framework to ensure its development. Of course, there should also be some necessary regulatory measures. I have had discussions with many responsible persons in the cryptocurrency industry, and they also expressed the hope for reasonable regulation. Currently, the crackdown by the SEC on the cryptocurrency industry is hard to understand. Since I became interested in and involved in cryptocurrency, I have found that the SEC's attitude has slightly changed. They seem to see the potential of the cryptocurrency industry, possibly because they feel that my involvement has political influence.
But if we cannot win the election, the SEC may restore its hostile attitude and crack down on the cryptocurrency industry again. Therefore, we must continue to advance in future technology fields, including cryptocurrency and AI, to ensure that the US maintains a leading position globally.
Farokh: Can you talk about your successful experience in the NFT field? Did it surprise you?
Trump: When I entered the NFT market, the hype had already passed, and many people thought the NFT market had cooled down. But we launched 45,000 NFTs, and we originally thought it might take several months or even a year to sell out, but almost all of them were sold out on the first day. Then we launched the second, third, and fourth batches, each time achieving huge success. I even asked some early buyers if they were worried that the subsequent issuance would dilute the value of their NFTs, but most of them expressed support and hoped that we would continue to release new series, which surprised me.
This experience made me realize the huge potential of cryptocurrency in terms of payments. The vast majority of buyers used cryptocurrency for payments, not traditional US dollar checks, which gave me a deeper understanding of cryptocurrency payments. This was also the opportunity that truly sparked my interest in cryptocurrency. Although I didn't pay much attention to it at first, through the success of NFTs, I saw the practical application and potential of cryptocurrency.
Farokh: Has NFT changed your view of digital assets?
Trump: Yes, the success of NFTs has given me a whole new understanding of cryptocurrency. If it were just using US dollars for payment, I might not have had a big reaction, but seeing almost all transactions completed through cryptocurrency really opened my eyes. At the same time, my children are passionate about cryptocurrency, and their deep understanding of this industry has also influenced me. I realized that this is not just a game for young people; many of my friends are also staunch supporters of cryptocurrency, which further strengthened my interest and confidence in this industry.
Renowned real estate developer Steve Witkoff talks about the origin and potential of WLFI cooperation
Farokh: How did this cooperation start? I know there's an exciting story behind it. Can you take us through it?
Steve Witkoff: My son introduced me to two partners, Chase Hero and Zach Folkman, who are very smart. These young people dress a little differently from us, maybe with more tattoos. Through Chase and Zach, I met traders from all over the world. These people are as smart as any currency trader I've met, and they started telling me about the concept of decentralized finance, or "frictionless finance," and explaining why this approach is beneficial to the public, especially to those who are overlooked in the traditional financial system. The driving force of the US economy is credit, and many people cannot access credit resources.
As I gradually understood this, I thought there was no one who could understand this issue better than the Trump family. So we first had discussions with Eric Trump Jr. and President Trump and his advisory team, and we decided to push this forward together. We spent nearly 9 months conducting very thorough due diligence and hired an excellent legal team to help us operate legally in this field. Now, we stand at this important juncture today, the result of our many years of hard work.
Farokh: Do you think this can really change the way wealth is created in the US?
Steve Witkoff: I believe decentralized finance is the future direction. If you consider that today, in order to borrow money, you almost need to be "anointed" and become a member of the privileged class. I still remember when I left the legal profession, I represented the president, but even so, it was very difficult to enter the business world and access credit resources. Credit is at the core of our economic development, and cryptocurrency makes all of this possible. The application of decentralized finance as cryptocurrency also makes it easier to access credit.
We see a huge market opportunity, especially for those excluded from the traditional banking system. They cannot find banks to serve them, nor can they get the attention and support of banks. We see this as a business opportunity, as well as a way to democratize credit. We can make this process more equal, and at the same time, we may achieve good economic returns in this field, because there are a large number of people who cannot access credit in the existing system. This is unfortunate; young people have great ideas but cannot turn them into reality, which goes against the American dream.
Chase Herro, Director of Digital and Strategy, talks about the vision and future impact of WIFI
Farokh: What is the overall vision of the project?
Chase Herro: This is a very grand goal. I am most concerned about liquidity. We have to some extent confused the concepts of Bitcoin, Ethereum, and other tokens, although they are all great assets, but I think the game is actually very simple. People understand the US dollar, accounts, and their simplicity.
So, I started to seriously study stablecoins and really liked the idea behind them. For me, stablecoins are the easiest way for newcomers unfamiliar with speculation to enter this field. Just like gym members, once they switch from free to paid, they become more committed. So, I hope to push people to get more involved in this environment by allowing them to enter with $5. And in this process, real miracles will happen. If you are not familiar with stablecoins, they are a very impressive asset, backed by the purchase of US Treasury bonds. I think this is an excellent way to maintain the US as the global financial base layer for the next hundred years.
In history, we can see that a strong US means a strong world. However, today, the position of the global financial base layer is being challenged, and the uncertainty of the future makes us value the current US dollar even more. Currently, the largest cryptocurrency trading medium is still stablecoins anchored to the US dollar. My goal is to provide financial freedom to people while ensuring the sovereignty of the US economy, and at the same time, giving individuals control over their assets. Think about it, when have you heard of ordinary people being able to buy government bonds or bonds?
Farokh: How do you think this project will reshape the financial landscape in the coming years?
Chase Herro: The key is "accessibility." The goal of any large project is to make it easy for users to use and enjoy it. I think this is the direction we need to work towards, and this is also why I like the Trump family. They pursue comfort and ease of use from start to finish. Their performance in this regard is impeccable.
Our goal is consistent with their philosophy, which is to constantly strive to ensure that we can create a system that allows ordinary Americans and global users to easily enter this field and access opportunities they could not reach before. In this respect, the technology is very advanced, but also very complex. In the initial stages, we often tried to get my mother, grandmother, and sisters to enter this field, and we even offered a $10,000 reward for them to successfully register a MetaMask account. If they needed help along the way, the reward would be reduced. You will quickly find that many people encounter difficulties in the early stages.
This is the key to the future: allowing ordinary Americans to enter and use this field, experiencing the freedom it brings. This is one of the coolest things—your bank is with you, and your money is in your pocket wherever you are. This experience of controlling finances anytime, anywhere is revolutionary.
At the same time, this will be the most difficult intersection to achieve, so the simplest way is needed to attract the widest range of users. I have never seen anyone who can make complex issues as simple as the Trump family. I really believe that combining these two factors will give the American people the opportunity to fight for sovereign freedom.
This will change the status quo completely, because ordinary people have never had the opportunity to make a profit with $1. If you put US dollars into stablecoins, put them on the chain, you will immediately make money, and this is backed by government bonds. So we have to ask ourselves, why exclude this opportunity from the public? Sometimes I feel that some people are deliberately doing this, they want to stop all of this from happening. Many powerful people may not want all of this to happen, because it will weaken their power and resource efficiency. During the 2008 financial crisis, some people still bought mansions, while many people lost their retirement savings.
Farokh: What do you hope to achieve through this project?
Chase Herro: Zac is always more practical, and I am always more ambitious. My goal is to remove our debt shackles and rebuild the US debt structure, which is beneficial to both cryptocurrency and the US. Whoever holds the debt holds the power. Therefore, as interest rates begin to decline, funds will leave their original investments, and we hope to create a product that can reasonably attract these funds. My goal is to prioritize the interests of the US, and for this, we will build a product to achieve this goal.
In addition, our overall goal is to illuminate the future of the entire cryptocurrency community. There is a lot of tribalism in the cryptocurrency space, with different opinions on Layer 2 solutions or which token is the best. Our goal is to showcase everything that cryptocurrency and DeFi can offer, whether it's decentralized media platforms like Rug Radio or decentralized lending platforms like Aave. We want to introduce these tools and innovations to the general public.
Operations Director Zak Folkman: Future goals and usability challenges in simplifying DeFi
Farokh: How does World Liberty Financial address usability challenges? Who do you plan to bring into the DeFi ecosystem through this platform?
Zak Folkman: First of all, usability in DeFi is indeed a major challenge. Many DeFi protocols, such as some of our favorite platforms, are very powerful, but they are difficult for ordinary users to understand and use.
I have many friends who are tech-savvy and have dabbled in cryptocurrency, such as Bitcoin and Ethereum, but most of them keep their assets in exchange accounts like Coinbase and completely miss out on the potential of DeFi. They don't even know that there are things they can do besides asset speculation. Stablecoins are the best tool to help these users move away from purely speculative behavior, as Chase mentioned; they provide stable returns and are pegged to the US dollar, eliminating most of the volatility.
For us, the opportunity lies in showing users who hold assets such as Bitcoin and Ethereum that they can not only hold these assets but also participate in the DeFi ecosystem through a simple, user-friendly product.
I know that over 70,000 people are still following this project, and they are our true DeFi and cryptocurrency community members. For these users, entering a DeFi platform often feels very complex. You open the app, there may not be clear guidance, or you are faced with various market and staking opportunities and don't know how to choose, and in the end, you may give up using it.
For example, Eric and I discussed how to use Ethereum in a loop on the Aave platform, and he gave up after trying for a while because the process was too complex, and even though he is very tech-savvy, he still felt frustrated. That's the problem—DeFi lacks usability, and if we want to achieve widespread mainstream adoption and liquidity influx into the market, we must develop user-friendly products that allow ordinary users to seamlessly use them.
Farokh: How does World Liberty Financial plan to achieve these goals?
Zak Folkman: Our goal is not to reinvent the wheel, but to bring the best parts of DeFi to ordinary users who have not yet participated in DeFi platforms. We hope to build simple, intuitive, and user-friendly products that do not require seeking guidance from friends.
Through these simple products, we hope to bring more people into DeFi, helping them earn returns through stablecoins rather than taking high risks in speculating on the next meme coin.
Additionally, we also plan to help users unlock the liquidity in their existing assets, such as Ethereum or other cryptocurrencies. This is how we aim to achieve our goals: by providing stable income mechanisms and simple product designs to make it easy for ordinary users to enter the DeFi world.
WLFI Advisor Corey Caplan: Security Architecture Outlook
Farokh: Considering the high profile and expectations of this project, how do you ensure its robustness and reliability in terms of security and architecture? Understanding how to ensure the security of this platform is very important for the cryptocurrency community.
Corey Caplan: Security is an ongoing process, not a one-time event. I see security as a journey. We used to think that some systems were secure in the early days of cryptocurrency and open finance, but things have changed over time. Therefore, we must remain flexible, constantly learn, adapt to emerging security methods, and not stick to existing security patterns. Our team must always maintain an open mindset, accept new technologies and methods to ensure the security and robustness of the project.
World Liberty Financial: Token and Cryptocurrency Community Feedback
Farokh: What are the plans for the token related to World Liberty Financial?
Zak Folkman: This is probably one of the most anticipated questions, and there has been a lot of discussion about the token. I have seen some crazy predictions, and many people are guessing. Now, I will officially answer this question: yes, we will have a token. To answer this question, I have prepared a statement to provide some background and ensure that everyone understands the significance of this token.
At World Liberty Financial, we believe that broad participation is needed for the future direction of the platform and the entire decentralized finance (DeFi) space. We believe that a governance token is the best way to achieve this goal. Therefore, we plan to issue and distribute a governance token called WLFI in the future. The WLFI token is limited to governance purposes, granting holders the right to propose and vote on platform-related matters. The WLFI token is non-transferable and does not provide any economic rights, such as dividends or distributions. We only want people who truly want to participate in the governance direction of World Liberty Financial to buy this token, not those who are only looking to profit from speculation.
Please remember that although we are sharing these plans now, this does not constitute any proposal to sell tokens. Any sales will be formally announced through our official channels in the future.
Farokh: Who can purchase the token?
Zak Folkman: That's a good question. Although we do not consider the WLFI token to be a security, due to the current regulatory uncertainty in the US regarding tokens and token sales, we have decided to proceed cautiously and limit token sales to accredited investors who meet the requirements of the US federal securities law exemptions.
This means that Americans can only participate if they are verified as accredited investors (compliant with Regulation D). Potential token sales to non-Americans will also be restricted and comply with applicable regulations.
Farokh: How will the token be distributed?
Zak Folkman: As I mentioned earlier, there are many scams in the crypto world, and everyone must be careful of projects claiming to be associated with World Liberty Financial. If the information does not come from our official channels (Twitter, Telegram, or the official website), it is fake.
Regarding the distribution of the token, many previous reports were incorrect. The actual distribution method is as follows: like other DeFi projects, we will have a very fair token distribution. Approximately 63% of the tokens will be sold to the public, with no pre-sale or early discount purchases for VCs, and the initial sale will be directly to the public. 17% of the tokens will be used for user rewards, and 20% will be used for team compensation (including advisors and future employees). To ensure broad participation, we will set a voting power cap of 5%, so even if someone holds a large number of tokens, their voting power will not exceed 5%.
Farokh: How has the cryptocurrency community responded to this project?
Zak Folkman: Like any project, some people will support you, some will envy you, and some will disagree with your ideas, and that's normal. For me, the most incredible thing is seeing the leaders of our community, the true pioneers of the crypto space, supporting us. We have announced many advisors, such as Corey Caplan, Sandy Pang, Luke, Raphael, and others.
We also have many influential figures silently supporting the project, but they keep a low profile because they have their own investors to balance. If I could tell you the identities of these people, you would be amazed. These people have full confidence in the potential of the crypto community and World Liberty Financial.
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