World Liberty Financial Accuses Justin Sun of Defamation
World Liberty Financial, founded by the Trump and Witkoff families, is alleging that cryptocurrency investor Justin Sun is behind a targeted smear campaign aimed at damaging the value of their crypto products.
According to Tom Clair, an attorney for World Liberty Financial, “Justin Sun has repeatedly chosen to defame World Liberty publicly and to his millions of followers. This lawsuit is essentially a last resort to set the record straight and protect our token holders, employees, and other stakeholders.”
The company expressed hope that the court will reveal the inaccuracies in Sun’s statements.
Sun, known for his role in founding the Tron blockchain, had made headlines back in November 2024 when he announced a $30 million investment in World Liberty Financial (WLFI), claiming to be the largest investor at the time. “We are excited to invest $30 million as the largest investor in World Liberty Financial,” he wrote on a social media platform, pointing out that the U.S. is becoming a blockchain hub.
However, two years later, World Liberty Financial accused him of breaching his investor contract by shorting WLFI tokens, effectively positioning himself to profit from a decline in the company’s value.
In retaliation, the firm froze Sun’s assets, prompting him to allegedly threaten to publicly criticize World Liberty unless his stake was released.
Zach Witkoff, the son of Trump’s Middle East envoy, stated on social media that “Justin Sun participated in a smear campaign to tarnish World Liberty Financial.” He expressed confidence that the truth would emerge during the court proceedings.
Both Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr. shared posts amplifying claims against Sun, implying he had engaged in a “coordinated media smear campaign” without ceasing even when confronted with the truth.
World Liberty Financial pointed out that Sun had previously endorsed the company, describing it as “one of the largest and most important projects in the crypto space.”
After the company declined to unfreeze his assets, Sun began criticizing WLFI publicly, alleging flaws in its operations and advising people to steer clear of the organization. The lawsuit claims he even employed fake social media accounts to bolster these accusations.
In a highly viewed post, Sun alleged that WLFI created a feature to seize users’ digital assets, asserting that the company could freeze or confiscate token holders’ property rights without notice or reason.
He was clear in his claim that “the actions of the WLFI team are undermining the community’s trust in the project,” urging for transparency and integrity.
Complicating matters further, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has accused Sun of selling unregistered securities and manipulating the market, leading to a settlement where he paid $10 million earlier this year, which he disputes as a sign of wrongdoing.
