Trump-Backed World Liberty Financial Exchanges cbBTC for WBTC As Sun Takes on Advisory Role

The swap took place Wednesday, coinciding with legal setbacks for BiT Global

World Liberty Financial, an entity connected with Donald Trump, has recently swapped approximately $10 million worth of Coinbase's wrapped bitcoin, referred to as cbBTC, for its competitor, Wrapped Bitcoin (WBTC). This transaction happened concurrently with a court ruling against BiT Global, the custodian of WBTC, which had attempted to block the delisting of the token by Coinbase.

Wrapped bitcoin enables users to utilize bitcoin in decentralized finance (DeFi) across various blockchains. Coinbase launched cbBTC in September and announced its plans to delist WBTC in November due to not meeting listing requirements. This triggered a legal challenge from BiT Global, only to face a setback in court on the same day as World Liberty Financial’s swap.

Justin Sun, known for founding the Tron blockchain and being named one of CoinDesk's Most Influential figures of 2024, is now advising World Liberty Financial, having previously acquired a stake in the firm worth $30 million in exchange for WLFI tokens. In Coinbase's defense during the proceedings against BiT Global, they pointed to Sun's association, which they regarded as a risk factor due to his past controversies regarding market manipulation and fraud allegations.

"Trump's World Liberty exchanged all 102.9 $cbBTC ($10.4M) for 103.15 $WBTC 4 hours ago." — Lookonchain

On-chain data indicates World Liberty Financial has been significantly active in the market recently, purchasing tokens from Aave, Chainlink, and other companies linked to their strategic partnerships. Some board members of BiT Global expressed that Sun’s involvement could be beneficial given his prominence in the crypto space.

This latest development has heightened interest in the dynamics between cryptocurrency custodians and legal regulations, particularly as the market continues to evolve.