World Liberty Financial (WLF), a decentralized finance (DeFi) project backed by the Trump family, has successfully sold 99.3% of its recently issued 5 billion WLFI tokens.
The tokens went on sale on January 20, following a surge in demand after the initial public sale.
WLFI Token Achieves Major Milestone
According to the data on the project’s official website, World Liberty Financial has now sold a total of 24.97 billion WLFI tokens out of a 25 billion token supply allocated for public sale.
For context, the total supply of WLFI tokens is 100 billion, with an initial allocation of 20 billion tokens designated for the first public sale. This sale commenced on October 15, 2024, with the token priced at $0.015. Furthermore, the project restricted access to individuals who qualified through a whitelist.
By January 20, World Liberty Financial had completed its initial token sale, selling 20% of its total token supply. However, seeing the surge in demand, the project released an additional 5% of its token supply at a price of $0.05 per token.
“An additional 5% of our token supply is now available to purchase on our website. We appreciate the overwhelming support and look forward to welcoming so many new people to our community!” the project posted on X.
At the time of writing, only 34.6 million tokens of the 5 billion public sale allocation remain available.
The WLFI token’s primary purpose is governance within the World Liberty Financial Protocol. It allows token holders to propose, discuss, and vote on key protocol decisions. This gives token owners an equal voice in shaping the platform’s development, ensuring fair and democratic changes to its ecosystem.
As an added measure, the tokens will remain non-transferable for the first 12 months post-launch. Moreover, any community-approved changes to this restriction will not take effect until the one-year period concludes.
The milestone comes shortly after World Liberty Financial announced a partnership with Sui (SUI). The aim of this collaboration is to explore opportunities in DeFi. It will also integrate Sui’s technology into WLFI’s token reserve, “Macro Strategy,” supporting leading DeFi projects.
Token unlocks play a pivotal role in the crypto market, impacting liquidity, price volatility, and investor sentiment. They are events in crypto where locked coins or tokens are released and become available for trading in the open market.
This week, three major projects—Axie Infinity (AXS), Jito Labs (JTO), and Xave (XAV)—will release previously locked tokens into circulation. Here’s what you need to know and watch for.
1. Axie Infinity (AXS)
Unlock Date: April 12
Number of Tokens to be Unlocked: 10.72 Million AXS (3.97% of Total Supply)
Current Circulating Supply: 160.159 Million AXS
Total supply: 270 Million AXS
Axie Infinity is a blockchain-based game featuring digital creatures called Axies, often compared to Pokémon. This pet-centric game combines elements of blockchain, NFTs, and ERC-20 tokens, offering players the chance to collect, battle, and trade unique creatures in a virtual world.
The April 12 unlock will consist of 10.72 million AXS tokens valued at about $29 million. Axie Infinity will award the majority of these tokens for staking rewards and for the team.
Number of Tokens to be Unlocked: 11.31 Million JTO (1.13% of Total Supply)
Current Circulating Supply: 313.37 Million JTO
Total supply: 1 Billion JTO
Jito is a liquid staking service on Solana that distributes MEV rewards to holders. On April 7, Jito will unlock 11.3 million tokens which is currently worth around $20 million.
The project will allocate the majority of the unlocked tokens for ecosystem development, core contributors, and community growth. Additionally, it will allocate 10% of the tokens for airdrops.
Number of Tokens to be Unlocked: 313.29 Million XAV (3.13% of Total Supply)
Total supply: 10 Billion XAV
Xave is a DeFi platform that focus on decentralized foreign exchange (FX) markets. It enhances stablecoin liquidity through an automated market maker (AMM) model.
On April 11, the network will unlock over 313 million XAV tokens, which constitutes just over 3% of the total supply. Xave will largely focus distribution to the team, investors, and treasury.
China’s recent directive for its state-owned banks to decrease reliance on the US dollar has amplified a growing trend among countries seeking alternatives to the dominant reserve assets. In some instances, Bitcoin has emerged as a viable competitor.
BeInCrypto spoke with experts from VanEck, CoinGecko, Gate.io, HashKey Research, and Humanity Protocol to understand Bitcoin’s rise as an alternative to the US dollar and its potential for greater influence in global geopolitics.
The Push for De-Dollarization
Since the 2008 global financial crisis, China has gradually reduced its reliance on the US dollar. The People’s Bank of China (PBOC) has now instructed state-owned banks to reduce dollar purchases amid the heightened trade war with US President Donald Trump.
China is among many nations seeking to lessen its dependence on the dollar. Russia, like its southern neighbor, has received an increasing number of Western sanctions– especially following its invasion of Ukraine.
Furthermore, Rosneft, a major Russian commodities producer, has issued RMB-denominated bonds, indicating a shift towards RBM, the Chinese currency, and a move away from Western currencies due to sanctions.
This global shift away from predominant reserve currencies is not limited to countries affected by Western sanctions. Aiming to increase the Rupee’s international use, India has secured agreements for oil purchases in Indian Rupee (INR) and trade with Malaysia in INR.
The country has also pursued creating a local currency settlement system with nine other central banks.
As more nations consider alternatives to the US dollar’s dominance, Bitcoin has emerged as a functional monetary tool that can serve as an alternative reserve asset.
Why Nations Are Turning to Bitcoin for Trade Independence
Interest in using cryptocurrency for purposes beyond international trade has also grown. In a notable development, China and Russia have reportedly settled some energy transactions using Bitcoin and other digital assets.
“Sovereign adoption of Bitcoin is accelerating this year as demand grows for neutral payments rails that can circumvent USD sanctions,” Matthew Sigel, Head of Digital Assets Research at VanEck, told BeInCrypto.
Two weeks ago, France’s Minister of Digital Affairs proposed using the surplus production of EDF, the country’s state-owned energy giant, to mine Bitcoin.
Last week, Pakistan announced similar plans to allocate part of its surplus electricity to Bitcoin mining and AI data centers.
Meanwhile, on April 10, New Hampshire’s House passed HB302, a Bitcoin reserve bill, by a 192-179 vote, sending it to the Senate. This development makes New Hampshire the fourth state, after Arizona, Texas, and Oklahoma, to have such a bill pass a legislative chamber.
If HB302 is approved by the Senate and signed into law, the state treasurer could invest up to 10% of the general fund and other authorized funds in precious metals and specific digital assets like Bitcoin.
According to industry experts, this is only the beginning.
VanEck Predicts Bitcoin to Become a Future Reserve Asset
Sigel predicts Bitcoin will become a key medium of exchange by 2025 and, ultimately, one of the world’s reserve currencies.
His forecasts suggest Bitcoin could settle 10% of global international trade and 5% of global domestic trade. This scenario would lead to central banks holding 2.5% of their assets in BTC.
According to him, China’s recent de-dollarization will prompt other nations to follow suit and lessen their reliance on the US dollar.
“China’s de-dollarization efforts are already having second- and third-order effects that create opportunities for alternative assets like Bitcoin. When the world’s second-largest economy actively reduces its exposure to US Treasuries and promotes cross-border trade in yuan or through mechanisms like the mBridge project, it signals to other nations—especially those with strained ties to the West—that the dollar is no longer the only game in town,” Sigel said.
For Zhong Yang Chan, Head of Research at CoinGecko, these efforts could prove catastrophic for the United States’ dominance.
“Broader de-dollarization efforts by China, or other major economies, will threaten the status of the dollar’s global reserve currency status. This could have [a] profound impact on the US and its economy, as this would lead to nations reducing their holdings of US treasuries, which the US relies on to finance its national debt,” he told BeInCrypto.
However, the strength of the US dollar and other dominant currencies has already shown signs of weakening.
A General Wave of Currency Decline
Sigel’s research shows that the four strongest global currencies—the US dollar, Japanese yen, British pound, and European euro—have lost value over time, particularly in cross-border payments.
The decline of these currencies creates a void where Bitcoin can gain traction as a key alternative for international trade settlements.
“This shift isn’t purely about promoting the yuan. It’s also about minimizing vulnerability to US sanctions and the politicization of payment rails like SWIFT. That opens the door for neutral, non-sovereign assets—especially those that are digitally native, decentralized, and liquid,” Sigel added.
This lack of national allegiance also sets Bitcoin apart from traditional currencies.
Bitcoin’s Appeal: A Non-Sovereign Alternative
Unlike fiat money or central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), Bitcoin doesn’t respond to any one nation, which makes it appealing to some countries.
For Terence Kwok, CEO and Founder of Humanity Protocol, recent geopolitical tensions have heightened this belief.
For these same reasons, experts don’t expect Bitcoin to replace fiat currencies fully but rather provide a vital alternative for certain cases.
A Replacement or an Alternative?
While Bitcoin offers several advantages over traditional currencies, Gate.io’s Kevin Lee doesn’t foresee its eventual adoption causing a complete overhaul of the currency reserve system.
Recent data confirms this. The number of Bitcoin transactions has fallen significantly since the last quarter of 2024. Bitcoin registered over 610,684 transactions in November, but that number dropped to 376,369 in April, according to Glassnode data.
The number of Bitcoin active addresses paints a similar picture. In December, the network had nearly 891,623 addresses. Today, that number stands at 609,614.
Bitcoin number of active addresses. Source: Glassnode.
This decline suggests reduced demand for its blockchain in terms of transactions, usage, and adoption, meaning fewer people are actively using it for transfers, business, or Bitcoin-based applications.
Meanwhile, the Bitcoin network must also ensure its infrastructure is efficient enough to meet global demand.
Can Bitcoin Scale for Global Use?
In 2018, Lightning Labs launched the Lightning Network to reduce the cost and time required for cryptocurrency transactions. Currently, the Bitcoin network can only handle around seven transactions per second, while Visa, for example, handles around 65,000.
“If expansion solutions (such as the Lightning Network) fail to become popular, Bitcoin’s ability to process only about 7 transactions per second will be difficult to support global demand. At the same time, as Bitcoin block rewards are gradually halved, the decline in miners’ income may threaten the long-term security of the network,” Guo, Director of HashKey Research explained.
While the confluence of geopolitical shifts and Bitcoin’s inherent characteristics undeniably create a space for its increased adoption as an alternative to the US dollar and even a potential reserve asset, significant hurdles remain.
Achieving mainstream Bitcoin adoption hinges on overcoming scalability, volatility, regulatory hurdles, stablecoin competition, and ensuring network security.
The unfolding panorama suggests Bitcoin will carve out an important role in the global financial system, though a complete overhaul of established norms seems unlikely in the immediate future.
