DWF Labs Invests $25 Million in Trump’s WLFI Amid Growing Political Controversy

Monicah W

DWF Labs announced today that it invested $25 million into Trump Family-backed World Liberty Financial and is planning to open an office in New York City. It hopes to use this office to drive new relationships with regulators, financial institutions, and more.

Although this partnership would potentially create more liquidity opportunities for the US crypto market, previous allegations against DWF have raised some concerns about political misconduct.

Understanding DWF Labs’ Investment in WLFI

World Liberty Financial (WLFI), one of the Trump family’s major crypto ventures, has been making some big moves since the President’s inauguration in January.

The DeFi project allegedly entered talks with Binance to launch a new stablecoin, and it officially announced USD1 shortly after. Today, WLFI has entered a new partnership with Dubai-based Web3 investment firm DWF Labs.

“The US is the world’s largest single market for digital asset innovation. Our physical presence reflects our confidence in America’s role as the next growth region for institutional crypto adoption. Moreover,  the USD1 stablecoin and forthcoming global DeFi solutions align with our broader mission to improve financial services,” claimed Managing Partner Andrei Grachev.

DWF’s statement includes a few key details about its new relationship with WLFI. It essentially boils down to two key points: the firm has already purchased $25 million in WLFI tokens, and it plans to open a physical office in New York City.

On a positive note, this partnership could be significant for the overall US crypto market. DWF Labs has a portfolio of over 700 crypto projects.

So, physically setting up a hub in New York will give me regulatory freedom and the opportunity to invest directly in the local crypto market. This would potentially open up more liquidity for upcoming Web3 projects and startups in the US

Concerns of Financial Misconduct

Although DWF Labs is a popular market maker, it has been at the center of major controversies. Last year, it was accused of wash trading and market manipulation, and Binance allegedly shut down its internal investigation due to financial incentives.

Also, one of its partners was dismissed back in October over allegations of drugging a job applicant. So, the firm’s credibility and reputation have been shaky in recent times.

This is to say that the crypto community has reasons to worry about a deal between DWF and World Liberty Financial. A report from late March determined that most WLFI revenues go directly to Trump’s family.

WLFI owners are unable to actually trade their tokens, and the stated governance use of the assets seems unclear. In other words, there isn’t a clear reason why anyone would invest.

The growing concern is that firms like DWF would invest in WLFI as an easy tool for political corruption. Shortly after the election, Tron founder Justin Sun invested $30 million into World Liberty. Trump’s family apparently got most of this money, and the SEC settled a fraud case against Tron in February.

If DWF Labs invested a similar amount in WLFI, could this give it some legal protection? The Department of Justice already gutted its Crypto Enforcement Team, and New York’s US Attorney also signaled its intent to stop crypto prosecutions.

As this deal goes forward, it will be important to look for signs of any possible financial misconduct.

BeInCrypto has contacted DWF Labs about the 2024 market manipulation claims but has yet to receive a reply.

The post DWF Labs Invests $25 Million in Trump’s WLFI Amid Growing Political Controversy appeared first on BeInCrypto.

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Pi Network Pioneers Risk Losing Their PI Coins Over KYC Issues As Pi Day Approaches

As PI Day approaches, many Pi Network users or Pioneers could lose their accumulated Pi coins.

The risk comes following widespread complaints about the inability to complete the Know Your Customer (KYC) verification process.

Growing Frustration Among Pi Network Users

In a late February announcement, the Pi Network team stated that users who fail to complete KYC and migrate their balance to Mainnet within the extended grace period—ending at 8:00 AM UTC on March 14, 2025—”risk losing most of their mobile balance.”

“…the end of the Grace Period is inevitable to make sure the network can move on in its new phase without large sums of unverified and unclaimed mobile balances. Thus, this is the last chance for any Pioneer to complete the required steps to avoid forfeiting their past mobile balances,” read the announcement.  

This announcement has sparked widespread frustration among Pioneers. Based on discontent shared on X (Twitter), many claim they have attempted but failed to complete KYC. Crypto enthusiast Rod Thompson called the situation the biggest con job of crypto, with up to 10,000 PI Coins on the line for him.

“The Pi Network has been earning ad revenue for every one of my daily mining sessions, but I’m going to lose over 10,000 pi coins because people I haven’t spoken to in two years haven’t done KYC. At least one of them passed away over a year ago. That’s over $10,000 due to me for my efforts,” Thompson lamented.

Thompson is not the only Pioneer questioning the fairness of the Pi Network system. Another user, S.O.H., described the situation as “mass social engineering on blockchain.” Meanwhile, others, such as Ahmady Ala, reported that despite mining Pi for six years, they have yet to be allowed to complete KYC.

Pioneer’s screenshot on KYC issues with Pi Network
Pioneer’s screenshot on KYC issues with Pi Network. Source: Ahmady Ala on X

In the same tone, some users have had their KYC documents pending for over two years without resolution.

“My KYC verification has been pending for 2.5 years. Even if it won’t be approved, shouldn’t there be an option to reapply?” user H. Ibrahim posed in frustration.

Unfair Reward Distribution, Centralization, and Migration Delays

In addition to KYC-related frustrations, many users have reported balance inconsistencies. They claim their unverified balance keeps increasing while their transferable balance is significantly reduced.

This makes the migration process confusing, and the lack of transparency leads some to label Pi a “scam network.” Another major concern is the alleged unfair distribution of rewards.

“I mined consistently for 4 years, stayed loyal to Pi Network, brought in 39 people, and even completed KYC for 17 of them—yet I got nothing. Meanwhile, others with no referrals and irregular mining have more Pi than me. How is that fair?” another user, Mango Fan Token, stated.

Meanwhile, despite claiming a user base of 60 million, on-chain data indicates only about 11 million active users. This led to concerns over Pi Network’s actual adoption rate.

Pi Network Statistics from X vs. on-chain
Pi Network Statistics from X vs. on-chain. Sources: X account, Pi Explorer, and Piscan.io

Additionally, questions about centralization have emerged. Some critics argue that the project’s control mechanisms limit the potential for a truly decentralized network. Another issue plaguing the network is the failure of many users to migrate their Pi coins to Mainnet.

BeInCrypto reported recently that Pioneers have struggled with transferring their balances, even after fulfilling all required steps. Some users, frustrated by prolonged lockup periods, have resorted to selling their PI Coin accounts on unofficial markets, raising further concerns about the platform’s credibility and long-term viability.

While criticism of the network continues to mount, Pi Coin has recently seen double-digit gains as investors gear up for Pi Day. Some analysts speculate that the surge is driven by optimism surrounding potential developments on March 14.

Pi Network (PI) Price Performance
Pi Network (PI) Price Performance. Source: CoinGecko

CoinGecko data shows that PI Coin’s price was $1.71 as of this writing, up nearly 15% in the last 24 hours. However, whether the price momentum can be sustained in the face of ongoing technical issues and community dissatisfaction remains uncertain.

The post Pi Network Pioneers Risk Losing Their PI Coins Over KYC Issues As Pi Day Approaches appeared first on BeInCrypto.