- Binance to airdrop WLFI tokens for clients holding USD1 stablecoin.
- The promo comes days after World Liberty Financial gathered crypto superstars in Mar-a-lago.
- Trumps’ crypto ventures are under mounting political pressure.
Binance is extending its promo programme for a Trump family-backed stablecoin as Democrats mount fresh attacks against the crypto industry.
The promo programme will extend until March 20 and reward participants with WLFI tokens issued by World Liberty Financial, the crypto venture run by Donald Trump’s sons.
“We’re stepping it up to ensure our early adopters are continuously incentivised for providing liquidity,” World Liberty Financial said on Thursday.
Binance’s promo begins just two days after World Liberty Financial gathered a star-studded lineup of crypto and finance superstars. It coincided with the president’s political opponents, spearheaded by anti-crypto firebrand Elizabeth Warren, firing off their latest salvo against the industry.
Binance partnership
World Liberty Financial’s close partnership with Binance has been a common feature in Democrats’ attack lines against Trump.
In December, Binance launched a programme aimed at promoting the use of USD1, World Liberty Financial’s dollar-pegged stablecoin. It offered up to 20% yield on USD1 holdings of up to $50,000 for the exchange’s clients. The new promotion extends that programme.
Customers who hold the stablecoin on their Binance accounts will be airdropped a proportion of the total 235 million WLFI rewards pool over the next month. Binance also custodies 76% of all USD1 tokens in circulation, Arkham data shows.
Backed by US Treasuries and other securities, USD1 has surged 50% over the past month to become the fifth-largest stablecoin by circulation, with over $5 billion issued, according to DefiLlama data.
“Our involvement with World Liberty Financial–related products, including USD1, is limited to standard listing, infrastructure, and market-access services that we provide to a wide range of projects on consistent terms,” Jessica Jung, a member of Binance’s global PR team, told DL News earlier in February.
World Liberty Forum
Binance’s co-founder and former CEO Changpeng Zhao is one of the most prominent voices in the crypto industry.
In 2023, he pleaded guilty to having violated US law by failing to run an appropriate anti-money laundering programme during his tenure as CEO. He spent four months in jail in 2024.
Trump pardoned Zhao in October. Zhao has dismissed allegations that the pardon was linked to Binance’s partnership with World Liberty Financial.
Zhao was notably not among the speakers at World Liberty Financial’s star-studded event at the Mar-a-Lago, the president’s Florida retreat, this week.
The World Liberty Forum drew in speakers like the CEOs of Coinbase, BitGo, Franklin Templeton and Goldman Sachs.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino, rapper Nicki Minaj, celebrity investor Kevin O’Leary, and a slew of elected officials and regulators also attended the World Liberty Forum.
Mounting pressure
The Trump family’s crypto ventures have come under fire from powerful lawmakers amid an industry crash that has vaporised $2 trillion in investors’ holdings.
Earlier in February, Warren was among senators who issued a formal letter to Scott Bessent, the US Secretary of the Treasury.
In it, they called for a probe into World Liberty Financial on national security grounds over a reported $500 million equity stake in the firm linked to the United Arab Emirates.
They cited a Wall Street Journal report that says the deal was signed four days before Donald Trump’s inauguration and saw the UAE firm buy a 49% stake in World Liberty Financial.
On February 19, Warren sent a letter to the Treasury Department and Federal Reserve to refrain from using taxpayer funds to “bailout” the crypto industry.
Warren, a member of the Democratic Party and long-time Trump critic, also took direct aim at World Liberty Financial.
“Not only would it be deeply unpopular to transfer wealth from American taxpayers to cryptocurrency billionaires, it could also directly enrich President Trump and his family’s cryptocurrency company, World Liberty Financial,” Warren wrote.
The White House has consistently dismissed accusations of wrongdoing.
“The president has no involvement in business deals that would implicate his constitutional responsibilities,” White House counsel David Warrington told DL News last week.
Zhao was quick to comment on Warren’s letter on X. “Crypto never needed a bailout, never will.”
Crypto market movers
- Bitcoin is up 2.0% over the past 24 hours, trading at $68,181.
- Ethereum is up 0.1% past 24 hours, trading at $1,967.
What we’re reading
- Optimism token price plunges 25% as Coinbase cuts off DAO from millions in revenue — DL News
- Ethereum price eyes historic slide as Bitwise flags $1,500 — DL News
- Hyperliquid Launches $29 Million Policy Push in Washington — Unchained
- Bitcoin Downtrend Explained: Why Most Investors Are Getting Wrecked Right Now w/ Koroush — Milk Road
- Why Bitcoin price comeback is primed after the 47% crash, Kraken economist says — DL News
Lance Datskoluo is DL News’ Europe-based markets correspondent. Got a tip? Email him at lance@dlnews.com.
