Chiara Bianchi
Crypto projects backed by the Trump family experienced notable declines on Thursday. World Liberty Financial (WLFI), a DeFi token inspired by President Trump, dropped 24% in a single day. Meanwhile, American Bitcoin (ABTC), the BTC mining and treasury venture supported by Trumpโs eldest sons, saw its shares fall 21% in early Nasdaq trading.
The downturn coincided with broader market weakness, as Bitcoin and Ethereum declined 2.4% and 3.6%, respectively, according to PRIME.
Regulatory Scrutiny May Have Contributed
While the exact cause of WLFIโs sharp decline remains unclear, American Bitcoinโs slide may be partially linked to Nasdaq increasing oversight on companies raising funds to accumulate cryptocurrencies.
This comes amid a surge in U.S.-listed companies raising capital to purchase digital assets. Since January, 154 firms have announced plans to raise approximately $98.4 billion for crypto purchases, up from $33.6 billion raised by 10 companies prior to 2025, according to data from Architect Partners and the Financial Times.
Launches and Initial Trading Activity
American Bitcoin initially enjoyed a strong debut, gaining nearly 17% on its first day of trading, blending strategies of Bitcoin acquisition and mining.
WLFI also launched earlier in the week, trading at over $0.30 shortly after listing, reflecting a fully diluted valuation exceeding $30 billion based on its 100 billion token supply, PRIME reports.
