On Wednesday, World Liberty Financial’s native token WLFI experienced a significant loss of approximately 17% in value. This drop was a result of a governance proposal that opened for community voting, affecting over 62 billion WLFI tokens. The response to this proposal was immediate and negative.
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A Token Already Deep In The Red
At the time of writing, WLFI was trading at around $0.06, marking a 70% decrease since its initial release. The recent selloff added to the losses experienced by holders of the DeFi project associated with the Trump family.
The proposal that led to the price decline suggested strict vesting schedules for early investors and insiders. This included a two-year lockup cliff for early investors, followed by a gradual release over the next two years. Founders, team members, and advisers faced a similar lockup period with a three-year linear vesting schedule after the initial two years. The voting period for this proposal runs until May 7.
Token unlock proposal is now live for vote. ☝️ This is one of the most significant governance proposals in WLFI history. Here’s what’s at stake.
— WLFI (@worldlibertyfi) April 29, 2026
World Liberty Financial framed this move as a demonstration of long-term commitment, stating that if the proposal passes, 62,282,252,205 locked WLFI tokens will be unaffected by the market for at least two years.
Voting Numbers Tell Only Part Of The Story
Although the voting statistics appeared positive with 99.95% of votes supporting the proposal and the required quorum being met, criticism on X was loud and predominantly negative towards World Liberty’s decision. The voting structure was scrutinized for its coercive nature, as those who did not cast a vote risked having their tokens locked indefinitely.
Notable critics, including Moonrock Capital founder Simon Dedic, likened the proposal to a rug pull and questioned the timing of the two-year unlock period coinciding with the remainder of US President Donald Trump’s term in office. Tron founder Justin Sun also expressed dismay at the proposal, calling it one of the most absurd he had encountered.
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World Liberty Defends The Structure
World Liberty Financial defended the vesting structure, stating that it was designed to reflect governance preferences and ensure long-term commitment from token holders. The proposal was deemed as one of the most significant in WLFI history and was presented to the governance community on April 15 before proceeding to the voting stage.
Featured image from Unsplash, chart from TradingView