Key Insights:
- WLFI burned 47M tokens worth $11.3M to reduce supply.
- Price dropped 31% from launch peak despite recent burn efforts.
- Governance proposal seeks ongoing buyback and burn of treasury liquidity fees.
World Liberty Financial (WLFI), the Trump family–backed crypto project, burned 47 million WLFI tokens worth $11.34 million on Sept. 2. The move, confirmed by onchain data from Lookonchain, permanently removed the tokens from supply.
The burn followed WLFI’s first week of trading, which saw prices drop 31% from launch highs. The token briefly touched $0.331 on Monday before slipping to $0.23 by Wednesday.
WLFI Struggles After Launch Week
WLFI opened trading on secondary markets on Sept. 1, allowing early investors to sell. More than 24.66 billion tokens, or just over 25% of the original 100 billion supply, have been unlocked, CoinMarketCap data showed.
The burn represented 0.19% of circulating supply, reducing WLFI’s total supply to 99.95 billion. Onchain data from Etherscan confirmed the tokens were sent to a burn wallet.
Despite the reduction, the token remained under pressure. WLFI dropped 3.8% over 24 hours, with traders citing heavy selling from short-term holders. The team said the burn aimed to address this problem by tightening supply.
Buyback and Burn Proposal Gains Support
World Liberty Financial proposed a buyback and burn program on Sept. 2 using protocol-owned liquidity fees. The team claimed the measure would increase long-term holders’ relative ownership while removing tokens from participants “not committed to WLFI’s long-term growth.”
The majority of 133 respondents in the comments section voiced approval. However, the official vote on the proposal had yet to take place at press time.
Eljaboom, a trader active on X, called the burn “huge” and noted another governance proposal to buy back 100% of WLFI treasury liquidity fees. “$WLFI in the top 10 is just a matter of when not if,” he wrote.
Coin Bureau also flagged the burn, posting: “BREAKING: 47M $WLFI tokens have just been BURNED! WLFI is trading at $0.22, down 6%+ in the last 24hrs.”
Market Voices Highlight Concerns
Kevin Rusher, founder of real-world asset platform RAAC, criticized the hype around WLFI. He argued that “celebrity tokens or short-term hype” continue to undermine institutional trust in crypto.
“The concern is that speculative trading damages trust in crypto,” Rusher said. “That’s the opposite of what is required to build a resilient, long-term financial system.”
Mangirdas Ptašinskas, head of marketing at Galxe, highlighted another issue. He said WLFI’s launch pushed Ethereum gas fees to unsustainable levels. “If a spike in trading can suddenly push fees on a $200 transfer to $50, there is still work required to prepare the crypto ecosystem for mainstream adoption,” he said.
Token Burn Shows Mixed Reaction
While traders welcomed the burn, WLFI’s price action suggested skepticism remained. The token has lost momentum since its launch day, reflecting short seller dominance.
Still, WLFI whale accounts and supporters continued to promote the token online. Some even speculated on future U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approvals of WLFI-linked products, though no evidence supported these claims.
The WLFI team said it expected more product integrations in the coming weeks. Updates from developer 0xDylan confirmed the WLFI app was in progress, but partnerships required “additional deployment.” The timeline was estimated at two weeks.
WLFI Faces Early Test of Confidence
The Trump family’s WLFI project entered trading with high visibility and strong brand recognition. But the first week exposed the challenges of sustaining value after launch.
With WLFI down more than 30% from its debut high, token burns alone may not reverse sentiment. The outcome of the buyback and burn proposal could prove critical in shaping investor confidence.
As Rusher noted, the broader question is whether hype-driven launches help or hinder crypto’s path toward maturity. For now, WLFI’s future rests on execution rather than speculation.
Disclaimer
This article is for informational purposes only and provides no financial, investment, or other advice. The author or any people mentioned in this article are not responsible for any financial loss that may occur from investing in or trading. Please do your research before making any financial decisions.
Chandan Gupta is a crypto analyst and senior journalist. With years of experience in crypto trading and market analysis, he simplifies complex concepts of technical and on-chain metrics, making them easy for users to understand and helping them make informed decisions. Additionally, he uncovers real-time actions of whales and insiders that impact overall market sentiment.
