- Specs News
- Posts
- 11/26/24: Trump's New Bestie? 🇺🇸💊🙅🏻♂️
11/26/24: Trump's New Bestie? 🇺🇸💊🙅🏻♂️
Today’s issue is brought to you by Safe — the world’s leading smart account provider on EVM, securing $100B+ in assets (including Vitalik’s).
Top News
Justin Sun invests $30M in Trump’s DeFi project, World Liberty Financial
Pump.Fun disables livestreams indefinitely after moderation issues
CZ says memecoins are getting “a little weird”, and calls for real innovation
Specs’ Insights
1. Justin Sun invests $30M in Trump’s DeFi project, World Liberty Financial
🔥 JUST IN: Justin Sun reveals Tron's $30M investment in Trump-backed World Liberty Financial.
— Cointelegraph (@Cointelegraph)
8:36 PM • Nov 25, 2024
⌐◪-◪ → Did Trump just make a new bestie?
Justin Sun, the infamous founder of Tron, just invested $30M into Trump’s DeFi project, World Liberty Financial – making him the largest investor.
Sun, who also serves as an advisor to HTX, says his investment aligns with his commitment to advancing blockchain innovation in the U.S. While that may be true, it’s clear his real strategy is buying favor with Trump, one of the most powerful people in the world.
In terms of sales, things are finally looking up for World Liberty Financial, which got off to a rocky start with lackluster numbers. The project has now sold $50.8M in WLFI governance tokens — still a fraction of their original $300M target but well above their adjusted $30M goal.
More importantly, Sun’s purchase means “DT Marks Defi LLC,” a company controlled by Trump, can now start receiving a 75% revenue share, as the project crosses the $30M sales threshold.
The remaining 25% of revenues go to “Axiom Management Group,” a company controlled by WLFI founders Chase Herro and Zak Folkman — who previously launched Dough Finance.
If this project gains real-world traction and isn’t just another story of speculators flipping tokens, the revenue share for both Trump and the WLFI founders could be massive.
As for Sun, this move could not only deliver strong financial returns but might also help repair his questionable reputation in crypto.
2. Pump.Fun disables livestreams indefinitely after moderation issues
BREAKING: @pumpdotfun DISABLES LIVE STREAMING FEATURE
— DEGEN NEWS (@DegenerateNews)
7:19 PM • Nov 25, 2024
⌐◪-◪ → This is why we can’t have nice things
After going completely off the rails, Pump.Fun has disabled its livestream feature indefinitely. Memecoin creators were pulling increasingly desperate (and dangerous/illegal) stunts to pump their tokens, forcing the platform to shut it down.
While it’s easy to roast Pump.Fun, this problem isn’t unique. It’s a challenge for any platform that ties success directly to financial speculation. The root of the problem boils down to two things:
Memecoin virality outpaced the platform’s ability to scale moderation.
Unlike traditional platforms, where sponsors/ads act as gatekeepers, Pump.Fun connects content directly to money, removing any filter.
Think about it. On platforms like Twitter or TikTok, sponsors avoid the most offensive content, no matter how viral it gets. But Pump.Fun’s setup exposed the internet’s dark side and human nature.
Looking forward, will Pump.Fun re-enable livestreams? My gut says yes — there’s too much money on the table. But first, they’ll need to solve content moderation at scale.
And, as always, someone will create an even less censored version, letting degenerates and criminals roam free until it grows too big and faces the same issues.
At its core, this is the age-old dilemma: balancing free speech with moderating harmful content. Same game, different platform.
3. CZ says memecoins are getting “a little weird”, and calls for real innovation
I am not against memes, but meme coins are getting "a little" weird now.
Let's build real applications using blockchain.
— CZ 🔶 BNB (@cz_binance)
7:10 AM • Nov 26, 2024
⌐◪-◪ → Memecoins are getting weird
CZ, the founder and former CEO of Binance, has voiced concern over the growing trend of memecoins, saying they are getting “a little weird” as creators become desperate for profits.
His comment reignites the debate: are memecoins positive for crypto, or are they steering the space away from real innovation and legitimate use cases?
There’s no denying memecoins are the most speculative assets in crypto. Many argue they play a critical role in driving mass adoption — as seen with Solana’s traction and Phantom Wallet’s rise to the top of the App Store.
With that said, aside from attracting new users who want to get rich quick (but often end up losing money), they aren’t actually pushing the space forward in terms of real-world use cases.
While Pump.Fun live streams have definitely crossed the line, the core offering of memecoins remains unchanged: viral stunts, speculative tokens, and gambling.
Sure, we’re bringing in new users, but are they the users we want? I’d argue no. We’re chasing exit liquidity in the world’s greatest game of financial PVP while pumping vanity metrics.
It’s hard to focus when you see people turning $1K into $1M, but don’t lose sight of why we’re here: digital ownership, self-sovereign money, and trustless peer-to-peer commerce.
Everything Else
📈 Market Snapshot
⛓️ Crypto & DeFi
Ethereum blob usage surges amid Layer-2 demand
Avalanche begins $40M grant upgrade on testnet
Ripple launches tokenized fund on XRP Ledger
Phantom wallet adds Base in multi-chain push
ENS founder, Nick Johnson, discusses Namechain rollup project
Kalshi faces backlash for paying influencers to smear Polymarket
Truth Terminal integrates with AI models for new experimentation
Jupiter proposes $1.5B JUP airdrop vote
Binance delists 5 memecoins amid market turbulence
Binance launching BFUSD with APY guarantees
Timestamp launches Bitcoin startup crowdfunding platform
Michael Sonnenshein joins Aptos Labs as an adviser
🏦 Wall Street & VC
Spot Bitcoin ETFs see $438M outflows as BTC dips
WisdomTree registers XRP ETF entity in Delaware
Jiva Technologies adopts Bitcoin treasury strategy
Rumble adopts MicroStrategy-style Bitcoin strategy
Newmarket Capital launches Bitcoin-backed loan strategy
OpenTrade raises $4M for stablecoin yield products
🏛️ Legal & Regulatory
SEC collects $8.2B in penalties in 2024, half from Terraform
US Customs halts Bitmain ASIC imports amid sanctions
Peanut the squirrel owner launches new token, threatens lawsuit
Scaramucci critiques Democrats' crypto policies
🌎 Rest Of The World
UK FCA plans crypto rules by 2026
UK crypto ownership reaches 7M people, FCA reports
Morocco to legalize crypto after ban in 2017
Schuman Financial debuts MiCA-compliant EURØP stablecoin
🖼️ NFTs & Metaverse
Big Time Studios sets Dec 2 launch for new pvp mode
Dogecoin seeks funding for 2025 initiatives
Fidenza #685 sells for 30 ETH, $100k
CryptoPunk #4354 sells for 50 ETH, $172k