With its disclosure of a new strategic reserve, World Liberty Financial (WLF), a decentralized finance firm closely associated with the Trump family, is generating ripples in the crypto market.
The information surfaced during the well-publicized Ondo Summit in New York, where government authorities and business leaders convened to address the direction of digital banking.
Digital Asset Portfolio Grows To Almost Half A Million In ONDO
Over recent months, the DeFi initiative has silently been accumulating more cryptocurrencies. Notably, WLF bought $470,000 worth of ONDO tokens—the native currency of Ondo Finance.
Their purchase frenzy didn’t end there; they have diversified their portfolio with investments in big cryptocurrencies including Ethereum, wrapped Bitcoin, TRX, AAVE, and LINK of Chainlink.
Trump Jr. Takes Front Stage With A Bold Crypto Vision
Unexpectedly showing up at the Ondo Summit to generate buzz, Donald Trump Jr. spoke fervently about how cryptocurrencies can affect American economic power.
Given his father’s recent executive action to investigate the prospect of a national digital asset stockpile, his attendance at the event had great weight.
President Donald Trump’s DeFi project, World Liberty Financial, plans on creating a “strategic reserve” with tokens bought https://t.co/zH6O3bMuKu
— Bloomberg Crypto (@crypto) February 6, 2025
“I think it’s possibly the future of American hegemony, in terms of our economic standing, our economic might,” Trump Jr. said to an audience of industry leaders.
Regulatory Landscape Changes As Key Players Weigh In
The summit assembled an outstanding array of regulatory heavyweights including acting CFTC Chair Caroline Pham and House Financial Services Committee Chair Patrick McHenry.
While William Hinman from Andreessen Horowitz presented a more realistic view of the speed of regulatory evolution, former CFTC Chair J. Christopher Giancarlo offered views on the strategy of the present administration.
Their presence highlighted how conventional finance, government regulation, and the crypto sector are increasingly intersecting.
As of today, the market cap of cryptocurrencies stood at $3.12 trillion. Chart: TradingView
Market Variability Drives Significant Investments
WLF made large purchases in response to recent market volatility brought on by US President Donald Trump’s temporary tariff implementation on Mexico and Canada.
The company presumably spent tens of millions on Ether after a weekend price drop. Although World Liberty Financial refers to itself as a DeFi lending platform, it has not yet begun its primary operations and is instead focusing on growing its cryptocurrency portfolio.
Just In: World Liberty Financial to Launch Strategic Reserve as Trump Jr. Backs Cryptohttps://t.co/nPAYQYK3wj
— John Morgan (@johnmorganFL) February 7, 2025
Together with the Trump family’s participation, this approach has spurred debates on possible conflicts of interest as the government develops crypto rules.
The developments coincide with Ondo Finance’s announcement of intentions to introduce Ondo Chain, a specific blockchain designed for tokenized assets Together with WLF’s strategic reserve declaration, this project points to a possibly revolutionary time in the field of digital finance.
Still, co-founder Chase Herro kept a mysterious posture and said, “We are big builder fans,” therefore raising more speculations about the actual use of WLF’s bitcoin hoard.
Featured image from Gemini Imagen, chart from TradingView