TLDR
- Justin Sun launched legal proceedings against World Liberty Financial in California federal court
- The lawsuit alleges WLFI locked his digital assets, eliminated voting privileges, and issued threats to destroy them
- Sun attempted private negotiations before pursuing litigation
- A controversial governance vote would permanently lock tokens of holders who refuse to consent
- Sun maintains support for President Trump while challenging the project’s management practices
Justin Sun, the entrepreneur behind Tron, has initiated legal proceedings against World Liberty Financial, the cryptocurrency venture associated with the Trump family, filing his complaint in a California federal court.
According to Sun’s allegations, the WLFI leadership improperly locked his digital assets, stripped away his governance voting privileges, and issued threats to permanently destroy his holdings without providing adequate justification.
Prior to filing the lawsuit, Sun attempted to reach a private resolution with the project team. When WLFI leadership declined to restore access to his tokens, he determined that pursuing legal remedies was his only remaining course of action.
Sun previously held the position of World Liberty Financial’s largest independent investor. That relationship has transformed dramatically, with him now emerging as the project’s most outspoken detractor.
On April 12, Sun made public allegations that WLFI’s development team had secretly integrated a blacklisting mechanism into the project’s smart contract code. According to his claims, this hidden feature grants the team authority to freeze, limit, and essentially seize investor holdings.
World Liberty Financial issued a response via social media, dismissing Sun’s statements as “baseless allegations” while accusing him of “playing the victim.” The team suggested litigation was forthcoming, stating: “See you in court pal.”
The Governance Dispute
Tensions escalated further when World Liberty published a governance proposal on April 15. This proposal aims to transform more than 62 billion WLFI tokens from indefinite lock periods into structured vesting arrangements.
The proposal outlines that founders, team personnel, and advisors would face a two-year initial lock period, followed by a gradual three-year release schedule. Additionally, a 10% token burn would take effect upon approval of the proposal.
Investors who reject these modified terms would face indefinite token lockups under the current framework.
Sun characterized the proposal as “one of the most absurd governance scams” he has witnessed. He argues that while presented as a governance initiative, it operates more like a mechanism to trap investors who fail to actively consent.
Due to the frozen status of his holdings, Sun claims he lacks any ability to participate in the voting process — whether in favor or opposition.
Sun Still Backs Trump Despite Legal Fight
Sun emphasized through his public statements that filing this lawsuit does not represent a shift in his stance toward President Trump or the administration’s policies.
“Unfortunately, certain individuals on the World Liberty project team have been operating the project in a manner that goes against President Trump’s values,” Sun wrote.
Sun reportedly ranks among the largest holders of the TRUMP memecoin. This significant position secured him an invitation to an exclusive crypto gala dinner in May 2025, where he received a commemorative watch during the ceremony.
According to data from CoinCarp analytics platform, the TRUMP memecoin has attracted 642,882 holders. The top 10 wallets control over 91% of the total token supply.
World Liberty Financial representatives declined to provide comments regarding the lawsuit when approached by journalists.
